[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 8]
[Senate]
[Pages 10830-10831]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                   ON THE 10TH ANNIVERSARY OF PEPFAR

  Mr. CARDIN. Mr. President, last week I was honored to celebrate the 
10th anniversary of the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, 
PEPFAR, along with Secretary of State John Kerry; Global Aids 
Coordinator, Ambassador Eric Goosby; Senator Mike Enzi; Namibian Health 
Minister D. Richard Kamwi, and Tatu Msangi, a PEPFAR beneficiary and 
nurse from Tanzania.
  Ten years ago, AIDS threatened the very foundation of societies in 
Africa--creating millions of orphans, stalling economic development, 
and leaving countries stuck in poverty. Before PEPFAR started in 
Namibia in 2004, Minister Kamwi explained, nearly one in four pregnant 
women in Namibia were infected with HIV, yet only a handful of them 
could access treatment. The circumstances were dire, and it was clear 
something needed to be done. The visionary leadership of

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President George W. Bush and the Congressional Black Caucus, especially 
the late Congressman Donald Payne Sr. and Congresswoman Barbara Lee, 
led to the establishment of the program in 2003 with an initial $15 
billion to fight HIV and AIDS worldwide.
  Today, thanks to the ongoing, bipartisan U.S. commitment to PEPFAR, 
hope has replaced despair, life has replaced death, and productivity 
has replaced illness and disability. PEPFAR is the largest commitment 
by any nation to combat a single disease internationally, and it has 
saved and improved millions of lives. Today Namibia's mother-to-child 
HIV transmission rate at 6 weeks is less than 3 percent. Thanks to 
PEPFAR, Ms. Msangi, is healthy enough to help treat and counsel HIV 
patients, and her daughter Faith was born HIV-free, representing the 
best of what this remarkable program has to offer.
  This bipartisan program is a tremendous success, having exceeded 
every one of its initial goals. PEPFAR directly supports nearly 5.1 
million people on antiretroviral treatment, and has contributed to a 
20-percent reduction in new HIV infections globally. This month, the 
program reached a remarkable milestone when the one-millionth infant 
was born HIV-free, thanks to PEPFAR. Thirteen countries have reached a 
crucial tipping point--where annual new adult HIV infections are below 
the annual increase in adults on antiretroviral drug treatment. And we 
are building capacity for recipient nations to address the problem. We 
have helped improve host country health care delivery systems, and 
countries are now taking ownership in their responsibility to care for 
their people.
  I authored an amendment to PEPFAR's 2008 reauthorization bill that 
supports in-country health worker training for people like Ms. Msangi, 
which U.S. universities and NGOs support along with other elements of 
the program. Research being done by Maryland institutions--including 
the National Institutes of Health, Johns Hopkins University, and the 
University of Maryland--is making a difference globally; and Maryland 
NGO's like Catholic Relief Services of Baltimore are partnering with us 
in this global fight.
  Yet despite the remarkable progress that these partnerships have 
produced, we still have challenges ahead of us. According to UNAIDS, an 
estimated 1.7 million people are dying annually from AIDS-related 
causes. Global health and development resources are being squeezed due 
to difficult economic times. And issues of stigma and discrimination 
continue to limit access to treatment and care to those in need.
  The U.S. will continue to lead this global fight, but we need the 
commitment and leadership of partner countries--reinforced with support 
from donor nations, civil society, people living with HIV, faith-based 
organizations, the private sector, foundations, and the Global Fund--in 
order to see an HIV-free generation in our lifetime.
  PEPFAR represents the best of what our government can do when we put 
aside partisanship for the good of humanity. It represents the very 
best of America and our commitment to global humanitarian values. It is 
a testament to the power of thinking big and of dreaming big, and we 
must continue to do just that to conquer this disease once and for all.

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