    [United States Statutes at Large, Volume 124, 111th Congress, 2nd Session]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

    PROCLAMATION 8609--NOV. 30, 2010

    Proclamation 8609 of November 30, 2010
    World AIDS Day, 2010
    By the President of the United States of America
    A Proclamation

    On this World AIDS Day, as we approach the thirtieth year of the HIV/
    AIDS pandemic, we reflect on the many Americans and others around the
    globe lost to this devastating disease, and pledge our support to the 33
    million people worldwide who live with HIV/AIDS. We also recommit to
    building on the great strides made in fighting HIV, to preventing the
    spread of the disease, to continuing our efforts to combat stigma and
    discrimination, and to finding a cure.
    Today, we are experiencing a domestic HIV epidemic that demands our
    attention and leadership. My Administration has invigorated our response
    to HIV by releasing the first comprehensive National HIV/AIDS Strategy
    for the United States. Its vision is an America in which new HIV
    infections are rare, and when they do occur, all persons--regardless of
    age, gender, race or ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, or
    socio-economic circumstance--will have unfettered access to high-
    quality, life-extending care.
    Signifying a renewed level of commitment and urgency, the National HIV/
    AIDS Strategy for the United States focuses on comprehensive, evidence-
    based approaches to preventing HIV in high-risk communities. It
    strengthens efforts to link and retain people living with HIV into care,
    and lays out new steps to ensure that the United States has the
    workforce necessary to serve Americans living with HIV. The Strategy
    also provides a path for reducing HIV-related health disparities by
    adopting community-level approaches to preventing and treating this
    disease, including addressing HIV-related discrimination.
    Along with this landmark Strategy, we have also made significant
    progress with the health reform law I signed this year, the Affordable
    Care Act. For far too long, Americans living with HIV and AIDS have
    endured great difficulties in obtaining adequate health insurance
    coverage and quality care. The Affordable Care Act prohibits insurance
    companies from using HIV status and other pre-existing conditions as a
    reason to deny health care coverage to children as of this year, and to
    all Americans beginning in 2014. To ensure that individuals living with
    HIV/AIDS can access the care they need, the Affordable Care Act ends
    lifetime limits and phases out annual limits on coverage. Starting in
    2014, it forbids insurance companies from charging higher premiums
    because of HIV status, and introduces tax credits that will make
    coverage more affordable for all Americans. This landmark law also
    provides access to insurance coverage through the Pre-Existing Condition
    Insurance Plan for the uninsured with chronic conditions.

    Our Government has a role to play in reducing stigma, which is why my
    Administration eliminated the entry ban that previously barred
    individuals living with HIV/AIDS from entering the United States. As a
    result, the 2012 International AIDS Conference will be held in
    Washington, D.C., the first time this important meeting will be hosted
    by the United States in over two decades. For more information about our

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    commitment to fighting this epidemic and the stigma surrounding it, I
    encourage all Americans to visit: www.AIDS.gov.
    Tackling this disease requires a shared response that builds on the
    successes achieved to date. Globally, tens of millions of people have
    benefited from HIV prevention, treatment, and care programs supported by
    the American people. The President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief
    (PEPFAR) and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria
    support anti-retroviral treatments for millions around the world. My
    Administration has also made significant investments and increases in
    our efforts to fight the spread of HIV/AIDS at home and abroad by
    implementing a comprehensive package of proven prevention programs and
    improving the health of those in developing countries. Additionally, the
    Global Health Initiative integrates treatment and care with other
    interventions to provide a holistic approach to improving the health of
    people living with HIV/AIDS. Along with our global partners, we will
    continue to focus on saving lives through effective prevention
    activities, as well as other smart investments to maximize the impact of
    each dollar spent.
    World AIDS Day serves as an important reminder that HIV/AIDS has not
    gone away. More than one million Americans currently live with HIV/AIDS
    in the United States, and more than 56,000 become infected each year.
    For too long, this epidemic has loomed over our Nation and our world,
    taking a devastating toll on some of the most vulnerable among us. On
    World AIDS Day, we mourn those we have lost and look to the promise of a
    brighter future and a world without HIV/AIDS.
    NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of
    America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and
    the laws of the United States do hereby proclaim December 1, 2010, as
    World AIDS Day. I urge the Governors of the States and the Commonwealth
    of Puerto Rico, officials of the other territories subject to the
    jurisdiction of the United States, and the American people to join in
    appropriate activities to remember the men, women, and children who have
    lost their lives to AIDS and to provide support and comfort to those
    living with this disease.
    IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirtieth day of
    November, in the year of our Lord two thousand ten, and of the
    Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-
    fifth.
    BARACK OBAMA