109 HRES 844 IH: Congratulating the International AIDS U.S. House of Representatives 2006-05-25 text/xml EN Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.

IV 109th CONGRESS 2d Session H. RES. 844 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES May 25, 2006 Mr. Engel (for himself, Mr. King of New York, Mr. Lantos, Mr. Berman, Mr. Brown of Ohio, Mr. Wexler, Ms. Lee, Mr. Crowley, Ms. McCollum of Minnesota, Mr. Carnahan, Mr. Sweeney, Mr. Pallone, Mr. Waxman, Mrs. Capps, Mr. Nadler, Mr. McNulty, Mrs. Maloney, Mr. Towns, Mr. Higgins, Mr. Hinojosa, Ms. Bordallo, Mr. McDermott, Ms. Millender-McDonald, Mr. McGovern, Mr. Cummings, Mrs. McCarthy, Mr. Rush, Ms. Jackson-Lee of Texas, Mr. Doyle, and Ms. Baldwin) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on International Relations RESOLUTION Congratulating the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative on ten years of significant achievement in the search for an HIV/AIDS vaccine, and for other purposes.

Whereas HIV/AIDS has killed over 25,000,000 people worldwide and poses a serious threat to the economic and political stability of the countries hit hardest by this terrible epidemic; Whereas the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) was founded in 1996 as a public-private partnership with a mission to ensure the development of safe, effective, accessible, preventive HIV/AIDS vaccines for use throughout the world, with a particular focus on developing countries, where the need is most urgent; Whereas ten years ago, insufficient attention and resources were devoted to the need for, and advantages of, a vaccine to bring an end to this disease; Whereas the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative’s research and policy programs have galvanized scientific efforts and substantially increased financial and political support for this vital effort; Whereas since its founding, the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative has advanced six vaccine candidates from concept to clinical trials, targeting the subtypes of HIV circulating in the developing world—a record matched only by one large pharmaceutical company; Whereas today, the majority of newly designed HIV/AIDS vaccine candidates are focused on preventing HIV/AIDS in the developing world, in large part due to the efforts of the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative; Whereas ten years ago only a few developing countries had participated in HIV/AIDS vaccine trials, but today several countries in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia are actively participating in HIV/AIDS vaccine trials, a reflection of the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative’s activism and commitment to working collaboratively with developing country partners; Whereas the model of the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative, which closely links clinical trial site investigators to product developers, has resulted in the first HIV/AIDS vaccine trials being conducted in Kenya, Rwanda, and India, as well as trials in Uganda and South Africa; Whereas the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative is committed to ensuring that vaccines will be accessible as soon as possible to those who need them most urgently; Whereas the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative is a founding member of the Global HIV/AIDS Vaccine Enterprise, recognized by the G8 as an important actor in the quest for a vaccine; Whereas the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative is an affiliated member of the National Institutes of Health’s Partnership for AIDS Vaccine Evaluation and is hosting NIH trials at International AIDS Vaccine Initiative sites in Africa; Whereas the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative’s inclusive approach unites scientists, academics, nonprofit organizations, and governments from the north and south, including communities of faith, communities of color, and many others, in an effort to develop a vaccine to stop global HIV infection rates of 14,000 a day; Whereas the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative established a Core Clinical Immunology Laboratory and a network of field laboratories in the developing world to facilitate HIV/AIDS vaccine evaluation; Whereas the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative’s Core Clinical Immunology Laboratory was the first Good Clinical Laboratory Practices (GCLP) accredited laboratory in the world to assess HIV/AIDS vaccines, and the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative’s laboratory in Uganda was the first to receive such accreditation in Africa; Whereas the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative has pioneered a successful business model as the first global health public-private partnership, building a bridge between research and product development; and Whereas the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative established a ground-breaking Neutralizing Antibody Consortium to address one of the key scientific challenges to vaccine design: Now, therefore, be it

That the House of Representatives— (1)congratulates the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative on ten years of significant achievement in the search for an HIV/AIDS vaccine; (2)recognizes the role of the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative in raising awareness and increasing financial and political support for this important cause; (3)admires the commitment of the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative to collaborating with developing country researchers, governments, and civil society in the common goal of finding a vaccine; (4)expresses support for the continued success of the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative; and (5)directs the Clerk of the House of Representatives to transmit an enrolled copy of this resolution to the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative.