Bush Asks for $15 Billion to Fight AIDS in Africa (It's unprecedented and will save lives)

reuters ^ | 1/28/2003 | Maggie Fox

[TLBSHOW]

Bush Asks for $15 Billion to Fight AIDS in Africa

By Maggie Fox, Health and Science Correspondent

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Bush, under fire from AIDS groups for what they call his neglect of the epidemic, asked Congress Tuesday to triple AIDS spending in Africa and Haiti to $15 billion over five years.

The announcement, made in his annual State of the Union Address, took AIDS campaigners by surprise, but they quickly both welcomed the plan and expressed skepticism about it.

"I ask the Congress to commit $15 billion over the next five years, including nearly $10 billion in new money, to turn the tide against AIDS in the most afflicted nations of Africa and the Caribbean," Bush said.

"This comprehensive plan will prevent 7 million new AIDS infections, treat at least 2 million people with life-extending drugs and provide humane care for millions of people suffering from AIDS and for children orphaned by AIDS," Bush added.

On its Internet web site at http://www.whitehouse.gov, the White House said the plan would target Botswana, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Guyana, Haiti, Kenya, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia.

It said the plan calls for the United States to work with private groups and governments to "put in place a comprehensive plan for diagnosing, preventing and treating AIDS."

Stephen Lewis, the United Nations special envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa, welcomed what he called "the first dramatic signal from the U.S. administration that it is now ready to confront the pandemic and to save or prolong millions of lives."

"It opens the floodgates of hope. Most importantly, it issues a challenge to every other member of the G7 to follow suit," he said in South Africa after a tour of the region.

The Physicians for Human Rights, which campaigns on a range of issues from land mines to HIV, last week urged Bush to increase global AIDS spending to $3.5 billion a year.

"This is totally unexpected," John Heffernan, a spokesman for the group, said in a telephone interview. "We applaud it. It really is an extraordinary commitment that clearly shows that the United States is serious about combating AIDS."

The Global AIDS Alliance welcomed the news but worried that the Bush administration could be competing with existing AIDS funds, such as the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. The United States has been accused of not putting its fair share into the Fund.

"In the (White House) fact sheet it said only $1 billion of the 10 billion in new money will go to the Global Fund," said Dr. Paul Zeitz, Executive Director of the Global AIDS Alliance. "We are very concerned that will leave the fund vastly underfunded and undermine its success."

A SLOW START?

Zeitz also said it looked like the program would start out slowly, with just $2 billion allocated for next year.

The International Association for Physicians in AIDS Care said it would closely watch what would be done with the money, if Congress approved it. "The devil is in the details," said Scott Wolfe, a spokesman for the group. But he also strongly welcomed the move, adding, "We call on other global leaders to step up and demonstrate similar commitments."

More than 36 million people are infected with the virus that causes AIDS -- 25 million in Africa alone. The United Nations predicts AIDS will kill 70 million people in the next 20 years unless rich nations step up efforts.

Bush noted this. "There are whole countries in Africa where more than one-third of the adult population carries the infection," he said. "More than 4 million require immediate drug treatment. Yet across that continent, only 50,000 AIDS victims -- only 50,000 -- are receiving the medicine they need."

There is no cure for AIDS but a cocktail of expensive drugs known as anti-retrovirals can keep disease at bay. Campaigners have been angered that such drugs are available in rich nations but not to the countries hardest hit by the epidemic.

"AIDS can be prevented," Bush said. "Anti-retroviral drugs can extend life for many years. And the cost of those drugs has dropped from $12,000 a year to under $300 a year, which places a tremendous possibility within our grasp."

The new Senate majority leader, Tennessee Republican Bill Frist, nodded and smiled as Bush spoke. Frist, a medical doctor, does frequent volunteer work in Africa.

"It's unprecedented. It is huge. And of everything he said tonight, it has the capacity to save more lives in this country I would say, but also globally, than anything else said," Frist told CNN.

[weikel]

More money being pissed away.

[Celtjew Libertarian]

I thought it was interesting that, until he got to the part about Iraq, this was the part of the speech that the President was most intense and emotional about.

I'm sure Frist is on board. We'll see what happens.

[rabidralph]

I love it when the president's message catches his enemies off-guard and with their pants down (no pun intended). Yes, it's a big number, but now the rest of the nations that criticize the US will have to put in huge amounts of dough, too. Or do they expect the US to foot the entire bill for an epidemic that is not our fault?

[Chad Fairbanks]

How do you figure? Define 'pissed away'... because, it seems to me that Bush is thinking ahead - if we dont' stop the epidemic there NOW, we will have our own critical epidemic HERE because of it...

[Geezerette]

But we don't have that kind of money to throw around the world! WE NEED IT HERE AT HOME!!

g

[Gunslingr3]

"I cannot undertake to lay my finger on that article of the Constitution which granted a right to Congress of expending, on objects of benevolence, the money of their constituents." - James Madison

He's buying votes, pure and simple...

[boomop1]

Keep the money out of the UN'S paws.

[TLBSHOW]

Money well spent. This we can agree. I hope education is included too. Another liberal talking point pulled from under their feet!

[freedumb2003]

<> My understanding is that it was brought here from Africa to begin with. You are 100% correct -- we didn't start the thing but it will reach us anyway if we don't take steps. Besides, we don't want Africa to be "helped" by the Islamofascists who will indoctrinate their hate of the USA. We don't want Africa to become another Middle East.

[freedumb2003]

(oops -- missed the original quote)
>> there NOW, we will have our own critical epidemic HERE because of it... <<

My understanding is that it was brought here from Africa to begin with.

You are 100% correct -- we didn't start the thing but it will reach us anyway if we don't take steps. Besides, we don't want Africa to be "helped" by the Islamofascists who will indoctrinate their hate of the USA. We don't want Africa to become another Middle East.

[weikel]

Sorry I don't shoot up and im not gay and to my chagrin am not a serial womanizer. I don't ever see myself getting aids and those that do, with the exceptions of those who were born with it or got transfusions brought it on themselves. If AIDs doesn't knock down the African population famine or some other mechanism will( Kenya Nairobi and a few others are doing okay).

[waterstraat]

This 15 billion dollars is not going to get him any more republican votes, and it will not put potential republican voters back to work. It is a total waste on a disease that is totally preventable.

[Wurlitzer]

No way! Not one more red cent should be given to anyone to alleviate a self inflicted condition. If the UN is so friggen wonderful, let them fund it (without our dollars) we do enough.

[TLBSHOW]

Cut taxs and the economy rebounds and there will be plenty of money to fund everything. The whole thing centers on getting these tax cuts. If we do not and the rats hold it up and up we will have major problems. Tax cuts must be top priority.

[rintense]

This was one of two things I was luke warm on in the speech last night.

[jriemer]

Keep the money out of the UN'S paws.

Who's to say we're not spending the money directly with a matching deduction in support in WHO and other UN activities to fund such an initiative? Think out of the box...

jriemer

[wimpycat]

Jesse Helms would be for it, if he were still in the Senate. If Jesse Helms is for it, I have no problem with it.

[mbynack]

Your point about it being constitutional is valid. There are a lot of good causes out there, but it doesn't give the government the right to donate my money to them.

[PhiKapMom]

I agree with you! Believe that Senator Bill Frist, M.D., who has gone to Africa and has seen how devastating this disease is to so many people that have gotten AIDs in Africa through no fault of their own. This epidemic could go around the world and strike more than the gay community.