Diary Prequel Package — page 12

that commitment. NIH spent an estimated $90 million on international HIV/AIDS research in FY 2000, a number that is expected to rise to $130 million by the end of FY 2001. The U.S. is the largest single donor to UNAIDS and the largest contributor to international HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention programs, a total of more than $460 million in FY2001. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) spent over $100 million on HIV/AIDS prevention in FY 2001. The U.S. Government has also dramatically increased its investment in international malaria and tuberculosis efforts to $110 million in FY 2001. Our programs for taking care of our own population affected by HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis are also world leaders. HHS is providing over $10 billion in FY 2001 for HIV/AIDS-related assistance. This includes $795 million for prevention services through the CDC and other agencies, $1.8 billion for Ryan White medical and related support services for individuals and families with HIV/AIDS, including the AIDS Drug Assistance Program; $2.2 billion for NIHfunded HIV/AIDS research, including $280 million in vaccine research; $4.3 billion for HIV/AIDS-related coverage for Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries. Over the last several years the scope of the infectious disease crisis in the developing world has led the U.S and other industrialized nations to make international public health an important item on their foreign policy agendas. In Okinawa in July of 2000, the U.S. and our G-8 partners committed to promoting investments and partnership to prevent and control HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria and to accelerate the development of new vaccines. More recently, wider public attention has turned to the challenges posed by these diseases as pharmaceutical manufacturers have recently announced price reductions in developing countries for their main anti-retroviral drugs. These price cuts are a significant step forward and have sharpened debate on the question of how best to provide treatment to the populations most affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic, malaria, and tuberculosis. As Senator Bill Frist (R-TN) has recently suggested, the U.S. has a moral obligation to provide leadership in mobilizing additional resources for international health. Stopping the spread of infectious diseases is also in our own enlightened self-interest, given the threats HIV/AIDS and other maladies now pose to the political and economic stability of Africa and other important regions of the world. It is in our public health interest to address tuberculosis as well, since 43 percent of U.S. TB cases are among foreign-born persons. We also believe the U.S. has a duty to ensure that those resources go to efforts that are medically and scientifically sound and will contribute to the development of a sustainable health infrastructure in the most affected countries so that they can meet their challenges themselves over time.