AIDSVote 08 Platform on Domestic and Global HIV/AIDS

OUR NEXT PRESIDENT MUST END AIDS END AIDS in the US: the AIDSVote ten-point platform (treatment) As part of universal health care initiatives, develop a plan to provide universal access to HIV prevention, treatment, care & support in the US by 2010, as promised at the UN in 2001 and 2006 Ensure lifesaving HIV treatment and care for all people living with HIV through universal health care initiatives, utilizing 2005 recommendations on HIV care expansion from the Institutes of Medicine including a $7B care expansion for low-income PLWHAs · As an interim step towards universal health care, expand Medicaid nationwide through passage of the Early Treatment for HIV Act; end all ADAP waiting lists through full funding of the Ryan White CARE Act; and plan for incorporation of RWCA programs in universal initiatives (prevention) · Reduce new HIV infections by investing at least $1 billion a year for science-based HIV prevention strategies through the CDC; ensure all HIV testing initiatives include a link to guaranteed HIV treatment and prevention services · Eliminate funding for ineffective abstinence-only-until-marriage programs, while creating a dedicated funding stream for comprehensive sex education by supporting the REAL Act. · End the ban on federal syringe exchange funding · Increase funds for HOPWA AIDS housing programs and care coordination and support initiatives; build support at all levels of government for strong and consistently accessible AIDS housing efforts (research) · Boost American leadership in HIV/AIDS research for a cure and more effective prevention and treatment options through a 10%-plus-inflation increase for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and its AIDS research programs each year of your first term; pass the Microbicide Development Act and commit to funding a diverse portfolio of HIV prevention research in the US (respect) · Ensure opportunities for work and self-support, medical privacy, conformance with the 1983 Denver Principles and full human rights for people living with HIV/AIDS · Address the prison-related AIDS epidemic by reducing the number of people living with and at risk for HIV in the criminal justice system by half, starting with changing the federal penalty for crack-cocaine to equal the current amount for powder cocaine and supporting H.R. 460 In the US, ensure HIV treatment, prevention and services for high-impact/high-need communities including Blacks & Latinos, gay men and other men of color who have sex with men, African American women, youth, people who are incarcerated, homeless and/or active substance users and other marginalized populations OUR NEXT PRESIDENT MUST END AIDS END AIDS around the world: the AIDSVote/08 STOP AIDS ten-point platform · Provide at least $50 billion by 2013 for the fight against HIV/AIDS (including our fair share of the Global Fund) to double the number of people on US-supported treatment · Add one percent of the annual federal budget to expand foreign aid to fight poverty and disease in impoverished countries, including fighting AIDS · Invest new resources to train and hire health workers and strengthen public health systems to achieve minimum health workforce densities of 2.3 doctors and nurses per thousand residents in high-impact countries · Support trade policies that protect and expand the right to affordable generic drugs for important health needs, including humanitarian licensing policies and off-patent use for drugs developed with public support · Implement comprehensive, integrated and evidence-based prevention policies, universal access to male and female condoms, voluntary male circumcision, HPV vaccinations and prevention equipment and treatment for injection drug users as well as new expanded research on microbicides and vaccines while integrating sexual and reproductive health services with AIDS programs · Meet the needs of children orphaned and made vulnerable by AIDS through community-based support including permanent homes, food, education, medical care and job training and employment · Promote the political and economic empowerment of women and girls by securing property and inheritance rights, access to universal education, and freedom from violence; · Drop 100% of the debt of 67 of the most impoverished countries, while removing harmful conditions that delay relief, and reforming policies that limit poor investments in health and education · Cut tuberculosis deaths and prevalence and malaria-related disease in half through a comprehensive plan to combat TB, malaria and HIV/AIDS as agreed upon by the G8 · Create an independent cabinet-level agency to fight poverty worldwide; ensure that poverty alleviation at home and abroad is as much a priority as defense or diplomacy; prioritize investments to reduce suffering in the most impoverished nations and communities, coordinating efforts between developing countries, local governments, other donors and multilateral institutions