Nancy Pelosi: “Mr. Speaker, I have chosen to make the Child Survival and Disease Programs Fund the subject of my motion to instruct on…”

“Mr. Speaker, I have chosen to make the Child Survival and Disease Programs Fund the subject of my motion to instruct on the foreign operations appropriations bill because of its vital importance and to reinforce a top priority of the House with respect to this bill. The House, under the leadership of Chairman Callahan, included $650 million for the Child Survival and Disease Programs Fund in order to emphasize that child survival and its programs to reduce infant mortality and to improve the health and nutrition of children in the poorest nations of the world should be our highest priority in our foreign assistance programs. This year's bill contains an increase of $50 million over the amounts provided last year specifically to combat infectious diseases around the world. These funds will add to the funds already planned to combat diseases such as HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, polio, yellow fever, malaria, and measles. The Senate bill does not segregate these funds in a separate account, and provides for only $30 million to combat infectious diseases.”