[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 58 (Thursday, April 22, 2010)]
[Senate]
[Page S2595]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




SENATE RESOLUTION 499--SUPPORTING THE GOALS AND IDEALS OF WORLD MALARIA 
 DAY, AND REAFFIRMING UNITED STATES LEADERSHIP AND SUPPORT FOR EFFORTS 
  TO COMBAT MALARIA AS A CRITICAL COMPONENT OF THE PRESIDENT'S GLOBAL 
                           HEALTH INITIATIVE

  Mr. FEINGOLD (for himself, Mr. Wicker, Mr. Brown of Ohio, Mr. 
Specter, Mr. Lugar, Mr. Durbin, Mr. Cardin, Mr. Sanders, Mrs. 
Gillibrand, Mr. Johnson, and Mr. Inhofe) submitted the following 
resolution; which was considered and agreed to:

                              S. Res. 499

       Whereas April 25th of each year is recognized 
     internationally as World Malaria Day;
       Whereas malaria is a leading cause of death and disease in 
     many developing countries, despite being completely 
     preventable and treatable;
       Whereas, according to the World Health Organization, 35 
     countries, the majority of them in sub-Saharan Africa, 
     account for 98 percent of global malaria deaths;
       Whereas young children and pregnant women are particularly 
     vulnerable and disproportionately affected by malaria;
       Whereas malaria greatly affects child health, with 
     estimates that children under the age of 5 account for 85 
     percent of malaria deaths each year;
       Whereas malaria poses great risks to maternal health, 
     causing complications during delivery, anemia, and low birth 
     weights, with estimates that malaria infection causes 400,000 
     cases of severe maternal anemia and from 75,000 to 200,000 
     infant deaths annually in sub-Saharan Africa;
       Whereas heightened national, regional, and international 
     efforts to prevent and treat malaria over recent years have 
     made measurable progress and have helped save hundreds of 
     thousands of lives;
       Whereas the World Health Organization's World Malaria 
     Report 2009 reports that ``[i]n countries that have achieved 
     high coverage of their populations with bed nets and 
     treatment programmes, recorded cases and deaths due to 
     malaria have fallen by 50%'';
       Whereas the World Health Organization's World Malaria 
     Report 2009 further states that ``[t]here is evidence from 
     Sao Tome and Principe, Zanzibar and Zambia that large 
     decreases in malaria cases and deaths have been mirrored by 
     steep declines in all-cause deaths among children less than 5 
     years of age'';
       Whereas continued national, regional, and international 
     investment is critical to continue to reduce malaria deaths 
     and to prevent backsliding in those areas where progress has 
     been made;
       Whereas the United States Government has played a major 
     leadership role in the recent progress made toward reducing 
     the global burden of malaria, particularly through the 
     President's Malaria Initiative and the United States 
     contribution to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, 
     and Malaria;
       Whereas President Barack Obama said on World Malaria Day in 
     2009, ``It is time to redouble our efforts to rid the world 
     of a disease that does not have to take lives. Together, we 
     have made great strides in addressing this preventable and 
     treatable disease. . . Together, we can build on this 
     progress against malaria, and address a broad range of global 
     health threats by investing in health systems, and continuing 
     our work with partners to deliver highly effective prevention 
     and treatment measures.'';
       Whereas, under the new Global Health Initiative (GHI) 
     launched by President Obama, the United States Government is 
     pursuing a comprehensive, whole-of-government approach to 
     global health, focused on helping partner countries to 
     achieve major improvements in overall health outcomes through 
     transformational advances in access to, and the quality of, 
     healthcare services in resource-poor settings; and
       Whereas recognizing the burden of malaria on many partner 
     countries, GHI has set the target for 2015 of reducing the 
     burden of malaria by 50 percent for 450,000,000 people, 
     representing 70 percent of the at-risk population in Africa: 
     Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) supports the goals and ideals of World Malaria Day, 
     including the achievable target of ending malaria deaths by 
     2015;
       (2) calls upon the people of the United States to observe 
     World Malaria Day with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and 
     activities to raise awareness and support to save the lives 
     of those affected by malaria;
       (3) recognizes the importance of reducing malaria 
     prevalence and deaths to improve overall child and maternal 
     health, especially in sub-Saharan Africa;
       (4) commends the recent progress made toward reducing 
     global malaria deaths and prevalence, particularly through 
     the efforts of the President's Malaria Initiative and the 
     Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria;
       (5) welcomes ongoing public-private partnerships to 
     research and develop more effective and affordable tools for 
     malaria diagnosis, treatment, and vaccination;
       (6) reaffirms the goals and commitments to combat malaria 
     in the Tom Lantos and Henry J. Hyde United States Global 
     Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria 
     Reauthorization Act of 2008 (Public Law 110-293);
       (7) supports continued leadership and investment by the 
     United States in bilateral and multilateral efforts to combat 
     malaria as a critical part of the President's Global Health 
     Initiative; and
       (8) encourages other members of the international community 
     to sustain and scale up their support and financial 
     contributions for efforts worldwide to combat malaria.

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