May 16, 2019
Washington, DC – Today the House Appropriations Committee passed its fiscal year 2020 funding bill for State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs (SFOPS). Importantly, the bill:
- Increases funding for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (Global Fund) to $1.56 billion, which, if enacted, would be the first increase in six years;
- Maintains the U.S. share to the Global Fund at 33 percent; and
- Specifies that $1.56 billion is the “first installment” of the Global Fund’s 2020-2022 Sixth Replenishment cycle.
Chris Collins, President of Friends of the Global Fight Against AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (Friends), praised the House action. “Friends applauds and thanks Chairwoman Lowey and Ranking Member Rogers for their continued leadership in the fight against AIDS, TB and malaria. We are grateful to them for rejecting the wholesale retreat on global health investment proposed by the Administration. This bill is a strong signal to donors around the world that America will play its crucial leadership role in a successful Global Fund Replenishment this year. A successful Sixth Replenishment would help save an additional 16 million lives and keep Americans safe from health security threats like multidrug-resistant tuberculosis.”
Faith leaders, researchers, the private sector, health advocates and public figures rallied around the need for an annual contribution of $1.56 billion to sustain American leadership and achieve the minimum $14 billion replenishment goal set by the Global Fund. In addition to the $210 million increase to the Global Fund, the bill also allocates critical funding for U.S. bilateral programs. U.S. bilateral programs and the Global Fund work closely together to maximize the impact of U.S. investments in global health. The bill includes $5.93 billion for the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), $755 million for the President’s Malaria Initiative and $310 million for USAID TB programs.
Jonathan Klein, Board Chair of Friends, commented:
“As we head into the Sixth Replenishment for the Global Fund later this year, U.S. leadership is essential to encouraging other donor governments and impacted countries to continue to expand the global response to AIDS, TB and malaria. An increased U.S. appropriation of $1.56 billion a year will create momentum for the rest of the world to also step up the fight and end the world’s deadliest infectious diseases.”
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About Friends of the Global Fight Against AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria: Friends of the Global Fight Against AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria advocates for U.S. support of the Global Fund, and the goal to end the epidemics of AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. For more information about Friends of the Global Fight, visit www.theglobalfight.org.
About the Global Fund: The Global Fund is a 21st-century partnership organization designed to accelerate the end of AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria as epidemics. Founded in 2002, the Global Fund is a partnership between governments, civil society, the private sector and people affected by the diseases. The Global Fund raises and invests nearly $4 billion a year to support programs run by local experts in countries and communities most in need. Working together, we have saved 27 million lives and provided prevention, treatment and care services to hundreds of millions of people, helping to revitalize entire communities, strengthen local health systems and improve economies. Learn more at https://www.theglobalfund.org/en/overview.
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