ONE Lauds House for Crafting Bipartisan PEPFAR Reauthorization

Washington, D.C. – A late-night breakthrough cleared the way for bipartisan legislation aimed at fighting three of the deadliest diseases on the planet — HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis. The deal, crafted by House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Howard Berman (CA-28), Ranking Member Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (FL-18) and the White House, means that America’s support for millions of people suffering from these diseases will grow substantially.

“This legislation continues the American legacy of compassion and help for millions of people around the world struggling to survive the world’s deadliest diseases in the world’s worst conditions. HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis claim nearly five million lives each year. This bipartisan legislation will bring greater resources and a strong response to these diseases. This legislation will save lives,” ONE President and CEO David Lane said.

After Berman and Ros-Lehtinen reached a bipartisan agreement with the White House on the proposal late Tuesday night, the House Foreign Affairs Committee today approved the five-year expansion of PEPFAR.

“Chairman Berman, Ranking Member Ros-Lehtinen and the White House deserve enormous credit for coming together on this effort. They have proved that bipartisan leadership is not an oxymoron in Washington, D.C. When our leaders step away from partisanship and come together in common purpose, they can achieve amazing things,” Lane added.

The bipartisan bill, dubbed the Lantos-Hyde US Global Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, TB, Malaria Act, would allow the U.S. to provide lifesaving treatment through bilateral channels for at least three million AIDS patients; prevent 12 million new infections; provide care five million AIDS orphans; and train and support 140,000 new health professionals. The bill also provides $4 billion for the treatment and prevention of tuberculosis and $5 billion to fight malaria.

“PEPFAR is an American legacy that has saved the lives of at least 1.4 million people so far, mostly in Africa, who have HIV/AIDS and many more from malaria and tuberculosis – three of the deadliest killers in our world. ONE urges the House and Senate to move on this legislation quickly,” Lane said.

Treatment has been one of PEPFAR’s greatest successes, allowing more than 1.4 million people with HIV/AIDS around the world to receive lifesaving ARV treatments. The new legislation transitions PEPFAR from an emergency response to a sustainable response program, providing for expanded training for 140,000 new health care professionals and community care workers. The bill also strongly focuses on prevention, a necessary evolution of the program in order to stop the spread of the disease. The new legislation includes comprehensive efforts that place a special emphasis on women and on the underlying factors which make them vulnerable to HIV infection, including a focus on violence against women.

Lane concluded, “Bipartisan PEPFAR reauthorization means that not only will we see our commitment through to continue providing lifesaving anti-retroviral drugs to those individuals, but that we also will be able to treat more individuals with the virus, saving more lives and protecting more families and communities. This agreement is a strong and positive way to begin this process. We look forward to Congress passing this historic legislation later this year.”

ONE is a movement of millions of Americans working with more than 150 of the nation’s leading relief, humanitarian and advocacy organizations to rally Americans — ONE by ONE — to fight the emergency of global AIDS and extreme poverty. For more information, please visit: ONE.org.