[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 180 Introduced in House (IH)]







108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. CON. RES. 180

  Calling on the President to urge the other members of the Group of 
Eight (G-8) at the upcoming G-8 meeting from June 1-3, 2003, in Evian, 
France, to pledge and contribute a substantial amount of new resources 
       to the fight against HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 14, 2003

   Ms. Lee submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was 
          referred to the Committee on International Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
  Calling on the President to urge the other members of the Group of 
Eight (G-8) at the upcoming G-8 meeting from June 1-3, 2003, in Evian, 
France, to pledge and contribute a substantial amount of new resources 
       to the fight against HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria.

Whereas the United States is a key participant in the Group of Eight (G-8) 
        meetings along with France, Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom, Italy, 
        Canada, and Russia, and including the European Union as an official 
        observer;
Whereas the G-8 meetings serve as an important venue for heads of state to 
        discuss a range of issues, including the economy, conflict resolution, 
        sustainable development, and global health;
Whereas the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) estimates that 
        over 42,000,000 individuals are currently living with HIV/AIDS 
        worldwide, and over 25,000,000 people have already died of the disease;
Whereas high rates of HIV/AIDS have contributed to poor health, malnutrition and 
        food insecurity, the deterioration of education systems, the social 
        dislocation of orphans and vulnerable children, and undermined the 
        effectiveness of military forces, and, have the potential to create 
        political instability in governments struggling to care for their 
        affected populations;
Whereas the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that tuberculosis is the 
        leading cause of death among women of reproductive age and individuals 
        infected with HIV/AIDS, killing more than 2,000,000 people a year, while 
        more than 8,000,000 people become sick with tuberculosis every year;
Whereas individuals living with HIV/AIDS are particularly vulnerable to the 
        malaria parasite, which the World Health Organization estimates has 
        infected more than 300,000,000 people, and which is responsible for more 
        than 1,000,000 deaths annually;
Whereas previous meetings of the G-8 have supported the development of 
        initiatives to fight the spread of HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria;
Whereas at the 1987 meeting in Venice, the heads of state and the European 
        Community identified AIDS as one of the biggest potential health 
        problems in the world and agreed to intensify national efforts and 
        international cooperation through concerted campaigns to educate the 
        public and prevent AIDS from spreading further;
Whereas at the 1989 meeting in Paris, the heads of state commented on the 
        international cooperation against AIDS and commended the creation of an 
        International Ethics Committee on AIDS, as suggested at the Venice 
        Summit in 1987;
Whereas at the 1996 meeting in Lyons, the heads of state recognized HIV/AIDS as 
        a global epidemic and called for greater cooperation in research, 
        prevention, accessible and affordable health care services, and 
        treatment diagnostics to control AIDS and other infectious diseases;
Whereas at the 1996 meeting in Lyons, the group further pledged to extend 
        various kinds of assistance programs to those countries hardest hit by 
        HIV/AIDS, and expressed strong support for UNAIDS;
Whereas at the 1997 meeting in Denver, the heads of state identified HIV/AIDS 
        along with drug-resistant tuberculosis (TB) and malaria, as being 
        responsible for over a third of all deaths in the world, and declared 
        the prevention of HIV/AIDS as an urgent global public health imperative;
Whereas at the 1997 meeting in Denver, the group also pledged to provide the 
        resources necessary to accelerate AIDS vaccine research, and to allow 
        UNAIDS to fulfill its mandate;
Whereas at the 1998 meeting in Birmingham, the heads of state again reaffirmed 
        the importance of international efforts to reduce AIDS through vaccine 
        development, preventive programs, and appropriate therapy, including 
        continued support for UNAIDS;
Whereas at the 1999 meeting in Cologne, the heads of state reiterated their 
        concern regarding the global spread of AIDS and the necessity to 
        continue efforts to combat AIDS through a combined strategy of 
        prevention, vaccine development and appropriate therapy;
Whereas at the 1999 meeting in Cologne, the group also highlighted the 
        importance of the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative in 
        allowing developing nations to invest more resources in AIDS prevention;
Whereas at the 2000 meeting in Okinawa, the heads of state noted the 
        relationship between HIV/AIDS and poverty, applauded the recent AIDS 
        conference in Durban, South Africa, and agreed to work with the United 
        Nations to organize a conference focusing on strategies to facilitate 
        access to AIDS treatment and care;
Whereas the 2000 meeting in Okinawa was also significant for producing an 
        ambitious plan to fight HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria;
Whereas at the 2001 meeting in Genoa, the heads of state reaffirmed their 
        commitment to the plan developed at Okinawa, and in addition announced 
        their support for the newly created Global Fund to Fight HIV/AIDS, 
        Tuberculosis and Malaria, to which they committed $1,300,000,000;
Whereas, as a public-private partnership, the Global Fund would provide 
        additional financing consistent with existing programs, to be integrated 
        into the national health plans of partner countries;
Whereas the G-8 expects the Global Fund to operate according to principles of 
        proven scientific and medical effectiveness, rapid resource transfer, 
        low transaction costs, and light governance with a strong focus on 
        outcomes;
Whereas the G-8 also pledged to work with the pharmaceutical industry and with 
        affected countries in the context of the Global Fund to facilitate the 
        broadest possible provision of drugs in an affordable and medically 
        effective manner;
Whereas at the 2002 meeting in Kananaskis, the heads of state outlined a 
        comprehensive set of specific strategies in order to help Africa combat 
        the AIDS pandemic, including building sustainable health systems in 
        order to deliver effective disease interventions, and continuing support 
        for the Global Fund;
Whereas the 2002 meeting in Kananaskis also produced a report that focused on 
        the effect of HIV/AIDS on educational systems, including the recruitment 
        and retention of teachers and their ability to reinforce the importance 
        of prevention, and in the difficulties in educating the 13,000,000 
        children orphaned by AIDS;
Whereas the G-8 meeting in 2003 will be taking place from June 1-3 in Evian, 
        France;
Whereas French President Jacques Chirac indicated that HIV/AIDS and other 
        infectious diseases would be on the agenda as a priority for the G-8 
        summit in Evian, saying in a speech to the diplomatic corps on January 
        7, 2003, that ``[t]he [AIDS] epidemic is progressing faster than our 
        efforts to contain it . . . [i]t is a major obstacle to development and 
        to the stability of a number of regions . . . [w]e have come a long way 
        . . . [t]reatments exist; we have created the Global Fund, which must be 
        maintained on a long-term basis; we recognized [at the World Trade 
        Organization negotiations] in Doha, that the poor countries need to have 
        access to medicines at affordable prices . . . [o]ur task in Evian will 
        be to make progress on [implementing these] decisions'';
Whereas on January 28, 2003, in his State of the Union Address, President Bush 
        announced an emergency plan for AIDS relief and committed the United 
        States to providing $15,000,000,000 over 5 years to address the global 
        AIDS pandemic; and
Whereas on May 1, 2003, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 1298, the 
        United States Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Act 
        of 2003, to authorize the $15,000,000,000 pledged by the President: Now, 
        therefore, be it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That Congress--
            (1) reaffirms its support for a comprehensive international 
        response to the global HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria 
        pandemics, that encompasses prevention, testing, care, 
        treatment, and vaccine research; and
            (2) calls on the President, at the G-8 meeting from June 1-
        3, 2003, in Evian, France--
                    (A) to convey the considerable and urgent interest 
                of the United States to combat all three of these 
                pandemics and to encourage the other G-8 members, 
                including representatives of the European Union, to 
                pledge and contribute a substantial amount of new 
                resources to the fight against HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, 
                and malaria, in order to complement the recent 
                commitment of the United States; and
                    (B) to urge all G-8 members and the European Union 
                to actively support and provide adequate funding for 
                the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria 
                in partnership with other donor nations, the private 
                sector, and interested foundations.
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