The Hill: Fighting AIDS domestically and globally means pushing more evidence-based services
Chris Collins, president at Friends of the Global Fight Against AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria

“[I]n his state of the union address, the president, noting dramatic scientific progress in addressing HIV/AIDS, pledged that ‘Together, we will defeat AIDS in America. And beyond.’ The next day the Department of Health and Human Services released a fact sheet on the plan to end the AIDS epidemic in America. … We need the plan to end the global AIDS epidemic as well. … There is a roadmap for success against HIV. But it must be funded adequately. … This year presents a special opportunity. The Global Fund holds its 6th Replenishment in October. By law, the U.S. cannot provide more than 33 percent of all Global Fund resources, so our pledge leverages donations from other donors who don’t want to leave U.S. funding on the table. One of the beauties of the Global Fund is that it propels others to step up. A three-year U.S. replenishment pledge of $4.68 billion (or $1.56 billion a year) will save millions of lives and drive others to increase their own contributions and achieve the Global Fund’s overall $14 billion replenishment goal. America’s AIDS epidemic is not separate from the global epidemic, but part of it. Both feed on inequality and lack of access to services. And both can, and must, be ended” (2/16).

CNN: Trump’s call to end HIV is a worthy mission both at home and abroad
Bill Frist, former U.S. Senate majority leader and chair of the executive board of Cressey & Company

“…We can and must lead the global fight to end [the HIV/AIDS] pandemic. … While Congress has protected PEPFAR and the Global Fund from proposed cuts in the past, the stakes are higher this year. … Quite simply, if the United States stays committed, other donor governments will step up, too. And if the United States backs away? U.S. complacency could easily be used as an excuse to reduce investment. … I am proud of my colleagues in Congress who recently came together across the aisle to request an increased U.S. pledge to the Global Fund. Now, to unlock support from other donors, Congress should take the next step and appropriate at least $1.56 billion to the Global Fund this year. … It will … be an important first step to ensure that all the donors to the Global Fund enable it to reach a minimum of $14 billion at its replenishment later this year. America has the opportunity to send a strong signal to the world that our leadership in the fight against AIDS continues, and that other donors should join us in an effort to end the biggest health threats once and for all, both at home and abroad” (2/15).