Bush FY 2008 Budget Proposal Would Allocate $5.4B For PEPFAR

President Bush on Monday released his $2.8 trillion fiscal year 2008 budget proposal, which would allocate $5.4 billion for the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, the Wall Street Journal reports (Phillips, Wall Street Journal, 2/6). Bush's budget proposal would allocate $4.2 billion for treatment, prevention and care initiatives to PEPFAR's 15 focus countries, as well as an additional $1.2 billion for global HIV/AIDS programs, disease research and contributions to partner organizations (President's FY 2008 budget, 2/5). Included in the PEPFAR budget, Bush has asked for $300 million for the Global Fund To Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and $491 million for other activities, including TB programs (PEPFAR.gov release, 2/2). In addition to the PEPFAR funding, the budget proposal would provide $300 million for the President's Malaria Initiative and ongoing malaria programs worldwide (President's FY 2008 budget, 2/5). The budget proposal also calls for $3 billion for the Millennium Challenge Corporation, a program meant to encourage economic and political reforms in developing countries, VOA News reports (VOA News, 2/5). Bush's budget proposal comes a week after the House voted 286-140 to approve a $463 billion spending resolution (HJ Res 20) for FY 2007 that includes a $1.3 billion increase for PEPFAR. The resolution would bring the total for PEPFAR to $4.5 billion and would allocate $724 million for the U.S. contribution to the Global Fund. In addition, $248 million would be allocated to expand programs under PMI, an increase of $149 million. The Senate is expected to consider the bill this week (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 2/2). "The Global fund will need $1.4 billion from the U.S., as well as added funding from the rest of the world," Friends of the Global Fight President Jack Valenti said, adding, "We are concerned that without additional funds, a lot of people will die. In the upcoming year, I look forward to working with the [Bush] administration and Congress to fully fund the Global Fund and the president's programs" (Friends of the Global Fight release, 2/5).

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