[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 195 (Thursday, November 30, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Page S7557]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                             WORLD AIDS DAY

  Mr. CASEY. Mr. President, on December 1, we mark World AIDS Day, 
reflect on the more than 35 million people who have died of HIV or 
AIDS, and recommit to leading the way to an AIDS-free generation.
  For more than a decade, the United States has been a leader in the 
global fight against HIV/AIDS, and this investment has shown real 
returns. The progress in treatment of both adults and children living 
with HIV/AIDS has been dramatic. According to the World Health 
Organization, in 2005, only 14 percent of women received services for 
the prevention of mother-to-child transmission. By 2016, that number 
had grown to 76 percent. Since 2001, the number of children born HIV-
positive has decreased by more than half.
  We should not interpret these metrics of progress to mean that our 
work is done or that we can afford to pull back from our commitment to 
eradicate this epidemic. Children, in particular, remain especially 
vulnerable to HIV/AIDS. The Elizabeth Glazer Pediatric AIDS Foundation 
notes that there are still 2.1 million children living with HIV, and 
these children are receiving treatment at rates far below that of 
adults. The failure to support effective and acceptable HIV services 
for adolescents has resulted in a 50 percent increase in reported AIDS-
related deaths in this group compared with the 30 percent decline seen 
in the general population from 2005 to 2012, according to the World 
Health Organization. We must do better.
  The challenge of protecting children from HIV/AIDS is not just about 
access to treatment. We must also continue to work to prevent mother-
to-child transmission, which is the leading cause of HIV infection in 
children, by improving services to pregnant mothers. We do this by 
strengthening healthcare systems in the most affected countries and by 
continuing to support the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, 
or PEPFAR, and local nongovernmental organizations in the fight against 
HIV/AIDS.
  The bipartisan commitment to addressing the complex challenges of the 
HIV/AIDS epidemic remains strong. However, this year, the Trump 
administration proposed cutting roughly 30 percent of the international 
affairs budget. This is risky, short-sighted, wrong, and will 
dramatically impact our leadership on global health issues.
  The international affairs budget supports programs that have been 
both instrumental in preventing and treating pediatric AIDS and in 
encouraging other donor countries and organizations to match our 
participation. Drastic cuts will impact not only our reputation and our 
partnerships in the international community, but will have long-term 
consequences we cannot clearly predict today.
  The international effort to combat pediatric AIDS exemplifies the 
ways in which countries, local NGOs, and the private sector can come 
together to protect the most vulnerable among us. Last month, I was 
proud to work with Senator Rubio to introduce S. Res. 310, a resolution 
to recognize the importance of a continued commitment to ending 
pediatric AIDS worldwide. I want to acknowledge the leadership of 
Congresswomen Ros-Lehtinen and Lee on a companion resolution in the 
House of Representatives and thank my colleagues who have joined as 
cosponsors of S. Res. 310 thus far: Senators Blumenthal, Booker, 
Boozman, Coons, Durbin, Feinstein, Franken, Hatch, Isakson, King, 
Klobuchar, Markey, Nelson, Rubio, and Van Hollen.
  This bipartisan effort represents one of many steps to reinforce U.S. 
leadership in combating HIV and AIDS and in protecting children around 
the world. On World AIDS Day, I call on my colleagues to redouble our 
support of U.S. Government programs that fight HIV/AIDS and build 
healthcare capacity towards an AIDS-free generation.

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