The White House is attempting to slash as much as $4 billion in funding for global health, contributions to international organizations, and other development assistance programs that has already been appropriated by Congress for the current U.S. fiscal year.
“Even for an administration already proven to be single-minded in its pursuit of cruel and senseless cuts to life-saving foreign aid, this second attempt to cut off assistance marks a new low,” said Asia Russell, Executive Director of Health GAP.
President Trump made a similar attempt in 2018, but it was withdrawn by the White House in the face of widespread objection.
The first step toward enacting cuts—directing the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to freeze its uncommitted funds across a number of development areas including global health—came earlier this week on Monday, August 5th. Experts report that even this step will likely cause disruptions, as programs will not be able to work to obligate unspent funds.
“When Congress returns on September 9th, they should put rejection of these reckless development assistance cuts at the top of their to-do list,” said Matthew Rose, Health GAP’s Director of U.S. Policy and Advocacy. “The White House is yet again playing politics with peoples’ lives—Congress must step up, show leadership, and fight back against these draconian cuts.”
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About Health GAP: Health GAP is an international advocacy organization dedicated to ensuring that all people living with HIV have access to affordable life-saving medicines. Our team pairs pragmatic policy work with audacious grassroots action to win equitable access to treatment, care and prevention for people living with and affected by HIV worldwide. We are dedicated to eliminating barriers to universal access to affordable life sustaining medicines for people living with HIV/AIDS as key to a comprehensive strategy to confront and ultimately stop the AIDS pandemic. We believe that the human right to life and to health must prevail over the pharmaceutical industry’s excessive profits and expanding patent rights.
