For Immediate Release
Media Contact:
Joana Casas, Program Communications Manager
E: joana.casas@amfar.org P: (212) 806-1602
NEW YORK, April 10, 2013—amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research, on Wednesday welcomed the President’s fiscal year 2014 budget proposal, which includes increases in funding for AIDS research and domestic programming, and a significant increase for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria, compared to the fiscal year 2012 budget. But the Foundation raised concern about the President’s continued proposed reductions for bilateral HIV/AIDS funding through the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR).
amfAR also applauded the inclusion of language in the budget proposal that would allow local and state policy makers to determine for themselves whether to use federal funds for evidence-based syringe services programs. Under current law, use of federal funds for syringe exchange services is prohibited.
Today amfAR also released an infographic illustrating the stark differences in the human impact of the House, Senate and White House global AIDS funding proposals for fiscal year 2014.
All AIDS funding faces additional cuts from the automatic across-the-board budget cuts known as sequestration, which the Senate and White House budget proposals seek to undo. amfAR noted in a recent analysis that while savings achieved from sequestration in global health funding will have minimal impact on deficit reduction, their impact on the lives of millions of men, women and children affected by HIV/AIDS will be devastating.
“We are pleased to see that the Administration is calling for increased resources for critical programs and research to combat the AIDS epidemic,” said amfAR CEO Kevin Robert Frost. “In his State of the Union Speech, President Obama reaffirmed his goal of achieving an AIDS-free generation. We applaud that goal, but recognize that continued investments in AIDS research and evidence-based programming are essential to success.”
The request to cut more funds from PEPFAR runs counter to the vision laid out in the “PEPFAR Blueprint for an AIDS-Free Generation.” That document details a clear approach to accelerate reductions in HIV infection and death rates.
“The Administration’s PEPFAR Blueprint for an AIDS-free generation documents the dramatic progress that can be made if we scale up effective programming,” said Chris Collins, amfAR’s vice president and director of public policy. “And the Institute of Medicine just described PEPFAR as playing a ‘transformative’ role in global health. We applaud the Administration’s robust support of the Global Fund. But the vision of the Administration’s own PEPFAR Blueprint cannot be realized if we gradually scale back our commitment to this highly effective program.”
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About amfAR
amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research, is one of the world’s leading nonprofit organizations dedicated to the support of AIDS research, HIV prevention, treatment education, and the advocacy of sound AIDS-related public policy. Since 1985, amfAR has invested more than $366 million in its programs and has awarded grants to more than 2,000 research teams worldwide. For more information, please visit www.amfar.org.