[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6187 Introduced in House (IH)]

112th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 6187

  To establish a research program under the Congressionally Directed 
  Medical Research Program of the Department of Defense to discover a 
                           cure for HIV/AIDS.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 25, 2012

   Mr. Himes (for himself and Ms. Lee of California) introduced the 
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Armed Services, 
 and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period 
    to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the 
                          committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To establish a research program under the Congressionally Directed 
  Medical Research Program of the Department of Defense to discover a 
                           cure for HIV/AIDS.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Cure for AIDS Act of 2012''.

SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS; FINDINGS.

    (a) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that--
            (1) finding a cure is essential to ending the AIDS epidemic 
        in the United States and globally;
            (2) AIDS treatment has saved millions of lives and also 
        makes it much less likely that HIV infection will be passed to 
        a partner;
            (3) access to AIDS treatment in the United States and 
        globally needs to continue to be expanded but AIDS treatment is 
        not a cure and not the ultimate solution for the tens of 
        millions of people living with HIV/AIDS;
            (4) the National Institutes of Health is the leading health 
        research organization in the world and has dedicated millions 
        of dollars to AIDS cure research;
            (5) to accelerate AIDS cure research and product 
        development, it is becoming increasingly important to invest in 
        areas that can complement the essential role of the National 
        Institutes of Health; and
            (6) a cure will save hundreds of millions of dollars in 
        spending and have a powerful positive economic impact globally.
    (b) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) It is estimated that in 2010 roughly 34,000,000 people 
        were living with HIV/AIDS worldwide.
            (2) In the United States, 1,200,000 Americans are estimated 
        to be infected with the virus.
            (3) Every 9.5 minutes, a citizen of the United States 
        becomes infected with HIV. Roughly 2,700,000 individuals, 
        including 390,000 children, became newly infected with HIV in 
        2010 alone.
            (4) In fiscal year 2012, the Federal Government spent 
        $27,700,000,000 on HIV/AIDS, the largest component being 
        services and treatment for people living with HIV/AIDS in the 
        United States at a cost of $15,600,000,000. The average 
        lifetime cost of HIV treatment is estimated to be $367,134 per 
        person.
            (5) In the last two years, discoveries have led to growing 
        optimism in the scientific community that a cure for AIDS can 
        be found. The eradication of HIV from the body of one 
        individual in Germany has led many scientific leaders to 
        believe that curing AIDS is now possible. Leading researchers 
        believe we are now at the cutting edge of scientific discovery 
        for an AIDS cure with a range of novel approaches being 
        explored, including stem cells, gene therapy, medications, and 
        immune response modifications, such as therapeutic vaccines.

SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF HIV/AIDS CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED MEDICAL 
              RESEARCH PROGRAM.

    (a) Establishment of Research Program.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary of Defense, acting through 
        the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program, shall 
        establish and support an accelerated research program dedicated 
        to the discovery of a cure for HIV/AIDS.
            (2) Administration.--The Secretary shall carry out the 
        research program established under paragraph (1) in 
        collaboration with--
                    (A) the Director of the National Institutes of 
                Health;
                    (B) the Director of the National Institute of 
                Allergy and Infectious Diseases; and
                    (C) any head of a Federal agency that the Secretary 
                determines appropriate.
    (b) Scope.--To provide the basis for developing a cure for HIV/
AIDS, the Secretary shall ensure that research conducted under 
subsection (a)(1) is highly targeted to address the following 
scientific questions and priorities:
            (1) How HIV persists despite antiretroviral therapy.
            (2) Where HIV persists beyond the reach of antiretroviral 
        therapy.
            (3) Whether ongoing attempts of the immune system to clear 
        the infection actually hinders the ability of the medical 
        community to cure infected individuals.
            (4) Why the immune system reduces but does not eliminate 
        levels of the virus.
            (5) How to measure ultra-low levels of the virus in the 
        body of an infected individual.
            (6) Identifying and testing interventions, such as drugs, 
        that may eliminate the virus from infected individuals.
            (7) Identifying and testing interventions, such as 
        vaccines, that may help an infected individual permanently 
        control the virus without antiretroviral therapy.
    (c) Assistance by Nonprofit Entities.--
            (1) Coordination.--In carrying out the research program 
        established under subsection (a)(1), the Secretary shall 
        coordinate with at least one eligible nonprofit entity--
                    (A) whose primary mission is ending the AIDS 
                epidemic through innovative research; and
                    (B) that has experience carrying out programs 
                dedicated to AIDS cure research.
            (2) Responsibilities.--The Secretary shall ensure that the 
        responsibilities of a nonprofit entity selected under paragraph 
        (1) include partnering with the Secretary to establish research 
        priorities for peer-reviewed funded research pursuant to 
        subsection (b).
    (d) Annual Reports.--In each annual report on the Congressionally 
Directed Medical Research Program that the Secretary submits to 
Congress, the Secretary shall include information on the progress of 
the research program established under subsection (a)(1).
    (e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $20,000,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2013 through 2017.
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