[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 15]
[House]
[Page 20063]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                                HIV/AIDS

  (Ms. WATERS asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, recent estimates indicate that there are 
40,000 new AIDS infections each year in the United States.
  African American men and women were disproportionately 
overrepresented among new AIDS diagnoses in 2004. African American 
women accounted for 67 percent of new AIDS diagnoses among women; and 
African American men accounted for nearly half, 44 percent, of new AIDS 
diagnoses among men. Today, African American women represent a 
staggering 71 percent of all the AIDS diagnoses among women.
  Though African Americans comprised 17 percent of the teenage 
population, age 13 to 19 years of age, by the end of 2004, they 
represented 70 percent of all the HIV/AIDS cases among teenagers, age 
13 to 19 years of age. Just more than one in ten, 13 percent and 15 
percent, were represented by Latino and whites respectively in the same 
age groups.
  The Congressional Black Caucus has decided that we are going to 
increase our efforts. Since the beginning of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, the 
Congressional Black Caucus has and will continue to assume a leadership 
role in addressing the issue through AIDS education and other actions. 
We are increasing our efforts to insist on personal responsibility, 
mandatory testing, outreach and education, advocating for increased 
funding, more legislation.
  I have introduced H.R. 6038. This is a bill that would require 
routine testing of those entering prison, with counseling and treatment 
and referrals and follow-ups for those who are leaving.
  We are going to conquer this epidemic.

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