Thomas Daschle: “Wednesday I was asked by a member of the press about the President's announcement of an initiative to spend $500…”

“Wednesday I was asked by a member of the press about the President's announcement of an initiative to spend $500 million, including $200 million Congress has already approved for the current fiscal year, to fight the global AIDS pandemic by targeting the transmission of the disease from mothers to infants. I applauded the President and his decision. His participation in the bipartisan campaign to combat this international health crisis is welcome and significant. It is important to understand, however, that the President does not pledge any new resources until 2004. And the overall amount of resources he does commit to, while important, isn't enough. The human toll this health crisis has already inflicted on this country and the world is staggering. Every twelve seconds, one person dies due to complications from AIDS. Every minute, one of those people is an infant. Each day brings 14,000 new infections, with half of those infected under the age of 25. There are currently 30 million people with HIV in Africa, and the National Intelligence Council estimates that number could double in the next five years. And, as if these numbers are not tragic enough, there is one more staggering statistic: by the end of this decade forty-four million children will have lost their parents to AIDS. It is also important to understand that, as these statistics demonstrate, the international community doesn't have the luxury of time in reversing the spread of AIDS worldwide.”