[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 176 (Tuesday, December 1, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Page S12069]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        WORLD AIDS AWARENESS DAY

  Mr. BURRIS. Mr. President, today is World AIDS Awareness Day. We 
dedicate this day to educating Americans and citizens all over the 
world about the HIV/AIDS epidemic, and promoting awareness and 
prevention of this disease.
  Despite advances in medical technology and treatment options, racial 
and ethnic minorities and young gay men continue to suffer in 
disproportionate numbers. African Americans account for 12 percent of 
the U.S. population, but make up almost half of the 1 million Americans 
living with HIV/AIDS. Black youth and young adults between the ages of 
13 to 24 make up 55 percent of all reported HIV infections. Also, Black 
women account for almost 70 percent of all new female AIDS cases. It is 
also the main cause of death for both Black men and women between the 
ages of 25 to 44.
  We continue to make considerable progress in caring for citizens with 
HIV/AIDS and in raising awareness, but today I call upon my colleagues 
to join me in demanding that we do even more. I was proud to support 
the expansion of the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Program in the 
Senate, a bill which President Obama recently signed into law. This 
important piece of legislation makes investments in care and treatment 
services, and also funds prevention and outreach programs--programs 
that will be improved and augmented by the sweeping health care reforms 
currently under consideration by the Senate. As we move forward, I will 
continue to work to promote awareness, education, and prevention of 
HIV/AIDS, and will be an ardent supporter of programs that care for 
those afflicted by this disease.
  World AIDS Awareness Day is a chance for citizens of the United 
States and people all over the world to get proactively involved by 
getting educated, and by promoting treatment and testing of HIV/AIDS. 
Together, we can beat this disease.

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