At 20 years, PEPFAR counts 25 million lives saved from HIV/AIDS. Congress must keep up the fight!

Everyone around the world deserves a life of dignity and opportunity. As President Biden noted in his State of the Union address, Congress can move us closer to that reality — and a day where everyone, everywhere is safe from HIV/AIDS — by reauthorizing one of the most effective disease-fighting tools in our arsenal.

The U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), which turns 20 this year, has helped save more than 25 million lives from HIV/AIDS, an astounding achievement. But far too many people still die of this preventable, treatable disease. Today, 38.4 million people live with HIV — almost/more than 3 times the population of Pennsylvania, and the virus infects someone new every 30 seconds.

It is imperative that Congress reauthorize PEPFAR in 2023 so it can keep up its lifesaving work. I encourage Rep. Summer Lee, Sen. John Fetterman and their fellow lawmakers to continue the legacy of PEPFAR’s incredible success and support America’s bipartisan commitment to fighting the global AIDS crisis.

Karla Doolittle

Bloomfield

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