Obama’s Six-Year, $63 Billion Global Health Initiative
This past Tuesday, May 5, 2009, President Obama announced a $63 billion global health initiative as part of his 2010 fiscal year budget which begins October 1, 2009. Reflecting the President’s belief that, “We cannot simply confront individual preventable illnesses in isolation. The world is interconnected, and that demands an integrated approach to global health,” Obama proposed a six-year health initiative dedicating $63 billion to support programs in the world’s poorest nations. The initiative is targeted at some of the world’s largest global health challenges such as AIDS, TB and maternal health according to Deputy Secretary of State Jack Lew.
The President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), a national program initiated during the Bush administration, would receive $51 billion over the six years of the initiative, aimed at AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. Obama’s plan aims to reach beyond AIDS and dedicate the remaining $12 billion to target other tropical diseases, improve pre- and post-natal care and support child health initiatives. The President’s budget calls to increase the $366 million spent on malaria, AIDS and tuberculosis in 2009 to $7.4 billion in 2010.
The President’s proposal has drawn criticism from many activists who feel that Obama’s plan fails to fulfill his campaign promise to expand PEPFAR by $1 billion a year over the next five years (not six) with a $50 billion pledge towards HIV/AIDS worldwide by 2013. Reflecting this sentiment, the Infectious Diseases Society of America called the proposal a meager increase which would impact the health care cuts already in place by impoverished countries in light of the worldwide economic crisis. Dr. Paul Zeitz of the Washington-based Global AIDS Alliance agreed that the proposal was a betrayal of trust with its lack of increased overall funding and Christine Lubinski of the Global Health Policy Center stated that the proposal is “worse than we had feared.” On the other hand, musician Bono, representing his advocacy group ONE, praised the funding increase stating that President Obama’s “strategic leadership on these issues is protecting the long-term interests of the people in his own country as well as saving vulnerable lives overseas.”
Stay tuned, as the White House plans to release a more detailed budget proposal on Thursday, May 7, 2009. For details on the proposed global health funding for 2009 to 2014 see the White House Statement by the President on the Global Health Initiative.
