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[Pages S6954-S6955]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SENATE RESOLUTION 452--COMMEMORATING AND SUPPORTING THE GOALS OF WORLD
AIDS DAY
Mr. ISAKSON (for himself, Mr. Coons, Mr. Risch, Mr. Menendez, Mr.
Sullivan, and Mr. Booker) submitted the following resolution; which was
referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations:
S. Res. 452
Whereas, as of the end of 2018, an estimated 37,900,000
people were living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) or
acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), including
1,700,000 children;
Whereas the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
established a global target to end AIDS as a public health
threat by 2030;
Whereas the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and
Malaria was launched in 2002, and, as of 2018, has helped
provide antiretroviral therapy to approximately 18,900,000
people living with HIV/AIDS and to 719,000 pregnant women to
prevent the transmission of HIV/AIDS to their children,
saving an estimated 32,000,000 lives;
Whereas the United States is the largest donor to the
Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and, as
of December 2019, every $1 contributed by the United States
has leveraged an additional $2 from other donors;
Whereas the United States President's Emergency Plan for
AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) program remains the largest commitment
in history by any country to combat a single disease;
Whereas, as of 2018, PEPFAR has supported treatment for
approximately 14,600,000 people, including by providing
antiretroviral drugs to 2,400,000 pregnant women living with
HIV to prevent the transmission of HIV from mother to child
during birth;
Whereas, in fiscal year 2018, PEPFAR directly supported HIV
testing and counseling for nearly 95,000,000 people;
Whereas considerable progress has been made in the fight
against HIV/AIDS, including a 16-percent reduction in new HIV
infections, a 41-percent reduction in new HIV infections
among children, and a 33-percent reduction in the number of
AIDS-related deaths between 2010 and 2018;
Whereas approximately 23,300,000 people had access to
antiretroviral therapy in 2018, compared to only 7,700,000
people who had access to such therapy in 2010;
Whereas it is estimated that, without treatment, \1/2\ of
all infants living with HIV will die before their second
birthday;
Whereas, despite the remarkable progress in combatting HIV/
AIDS, significant challenges remain;
Whereas there were approximately 1,700,000 new HIV
infections in 2018, structural barriers continue to make
testing and treatment programs inaccessible to highly
vulnerable populations, and an estimated 8,100,000 people
living with HIV globally still do not know their HIV status;
Whereas the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
estimates that more than 37,000 people are diagnosed with HIV
in the United States every year and 14 percent of the
1,100,000 people in the United States living with HIV are not
aware of their HIV status;
Whereas, in the United States, more than 675,000 people
with AIDS have died since the beginning of the HIV/AIDS
epidemic, including 15,807 deaths among people with diagnosed
HIV in 2017, with the disease disproportionately affecting
minority communities;
Whereas December 1 of each year is internationally
recognized as ``World AIDS Day''; and
Whereas, in 2019, commemorations for World AIDS Day focused
on the vital role that communities play in addressing the
HIV/AIDS epidemic: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Senate--
(1) supports the goals and ideals of World AIDS Day,
including the goal to achieve zero new HIV infections, zero
discrimination, and zero AIDS-related deaths;
(2) commends the efforts and achievements in combatting
HIV/AIDS made by PEPFAR, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS,
Tuberculosis and Malaria, and the Joint United Nations
Programme on HIV/AIDS;
(3) supports efforts to end the HIV epidemic in the United
States by 2030;
(4) urges, in order to ensure that an AIDS-free generation
is achievable, rapid action by all countries toward further
expansion and scale-up of antiretroviral treatment programs,
including efforts to reduce disparities and improve access
for children to life-saving medications;
(5) encourages the scaling up of comprehensive prevention
services, including biomedical and structural interventions,
to
[[Page S6955]]
ensure inclusive access to programs and appropriate
protections for all people at risk of contracting HIV/AIDS,
especially hard-to-reach populations;
(6) calls for greater focus on the HIV-related
vulnerabilities of women and girls, including women and girls
at risk for or who have survived violence or faced
discrimination as a result of the disease;
(7) supports continued leadership by the United States in
domestic, bilateral, multilateral, and private sector efforts
to fight HIV;
(8) encourages and supports greater degrees of ownership
and shared responsibility by developing countries in order to
ensure the sustainability of the domestic responses to HIV/
AIDS by those countries; and
(9) urges other members of the international community to
sustain and scale up their support for and financial
contributions to efforts around the world to combat HIV/AIDS.
____________________
