2/28/2008 - PEPFAR NEGOTIATIONS: ANTI-PROSTITUTION PLEDGE RETAINED

The House Foreign Affairs Committee is set to mark up tomorrow at 10:30 in
2175 Rayburn. As you may have heard by now, this evening the House Foreign
Affairs majority members came to an agreement with the White House and House
Republican Members. The bi-partisan agreed upon draft bill does the
following:
* Retains $50 billion reauthorization level, including $9 billion for
TB and malaria
* Links HIV/AIDS and malaria strategies to broader U.S. health and
development goals
* Includes contributions to the Global Fund ($2 billion a year) and
includes benchmarks similar to the Lugar bill but does not include a funding
penalty if benchmarks are not met
* Retains strong policy guidance on TB and malaria including
formalizing the malaria coordinator
* Supports research for all three diseases including operations
research and vaccine development
* Retains referral systems and coordination with other health and
development programs, including the InterAgency Working Group and linkage
to family planning programs but makes it clear that PEPFAR $ cannot be used
for family planning services except for purchasing condoms.
* Supports health workforce and systems strengthening including
addressing obstacles to achieve malaria and TB goals in additon to HIV
* Includes a separate strategy on preventing HIV infection among
women, youth, and girls
* Removes the 1/3 abstinence earmark but now there is a reporting
requirement on country prevention strategies particularly on A/B programs.
* Retains section on nutrition and HIV
* Reinserts prostitution pledge requirement

Also see:

PEPFAR Watch

Center for Health and Gender Equity (CHANGE)