[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 233 (Thursday, December 3, 2020)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 78195-78196]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-26793]




                        Presidential Documents 



Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 233 / Thursday, December 3, 2020 / 
Presidential Documents

[[Page 78195]]


                Proclamation 10123 of November 30, 2020

                
World AIDS Day, 2020

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                Today, our Nation joins millions across the globe in 
                remembrance of the precious lives lost to human 
                immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and acquired 
                immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS)-related illnesses, and 
                we reaffirm our support for those living with these 
                diseases. Thankfully, decades of remarkable 
                advancements and improved understanding have put us 
                within reach of ending its devastating impact. Through 
                increased awareness, revolutionary prevention 
                strategies, and safe and effective treatment regimens, 
                we will soon end the AIDS epidemic once and for all.

                Over the past 40 years, HIV and AIDS have infected more 
                than 77 million people worldwide and claimed no less 
                than 35 million lives, including those of 700,000 
                Americans. Currently, there are approximately 1.2 
                million people living in the United States with HIV, 
                including roughly 170,000 people who have not been 
                diagnosed. Additionally, it is all too clear that this 
                deadly disease disproportionately affects racial and 
                ethnic minorities.

                As President, I promised to end the AIDS crisis in 
                America within a decade, and I am proud to report that 
                we are on track to meet that goal. In 2019, I announced 
                Ending the HIV Epidemic: A Plan for America, a bold 
                whole-of-society approach to eradicating this disease. 
                Already, we have sent $227 million to cities, counties, 
                States, local health departments, and community health 
                centers to support and bolster their efforts. Under 
                this plan, our Nation's scientists, researchers, and 
                medical professionals have been able to identify where 
                HIV is spreading most rapidly, which informs decisions 
                about where to focus funding and provide support to 
                public health officials who are addressing needs at a 
                local level to eradicate AIDs. This July, as part of 
                these efforts, the Centers for Disease Control and 
                Prevention awarded $109 million to 32 State and local 
                health departments to support core HIV diagnosis and 
                prevention activities. Additionally, the Ryan White 
                HIV/AIDS Program of the Health Resources and Services 
                Administration (HRSA) is continuing to provide those 
                diagnosed with access to high quality, comprehensive 
                primary care. Under HRSA's Bureau of Primary Health 
                Care health centers have implemented critical early 
                detection initiatives that have produced life-saving 
                diagnoses of Americans living with HIV, saving 
                countless American lives.

                Across many fronts, our response has been 
                comprehensive--and it is working. Preventative measures 
                such as Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) and syringe 
                service programs are reducing the number of new HIV 
                transmissions and, if one has already been exposed, 
                Post-Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP) is helping prevent 
                further spread of infection. In 2019 alone, federally 
                funded health centers provided more than 2.7 million 
                HIV tests to over 2.2 million patients. The Ryan White 
                HIV/AIDS Program has proven remarkably successful at 
                viral suppression, reducing viral loads in 87.1 percent 
                of its clients' cases in 2018. And the National 
                Institutes of Health continues its work to develop a 
                vaccine.

                Outside of the United States, my Administration's 
                global response is being led by the world's most 
                advanced health experts and diplomats through the 
                President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), 
                the most successful

[[Page 78196]]

                health initiative in American history. When first 
                launched in 2003, there were 26.6 million Africans 
                infected with AIDS and only 50,000 receiving lifesaving 
                antiretroviral treatment. Today, more than 15.7 million 
                men, women, and children in Africa are receiving these 
                vital treatments. PEPFAR has saved over 18 million 
                lives, prevented millions of HIV infections, and 
                accelerated progress toward controlling the HIV/AIDS 
                epidemic in more than 50 countries.

                Through these and other initiatives we are bringing to 
                a close a painful chapter in human history. For the 
                past many decades, HIV and AIDS have inflicted untold 
                suffering on millions of people both here at home and 
                abroad. But by the end of this decade, we will have 
                eliminated this scourge from our country and released 
                much of the rest of the world from its deadly grip.

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the 
                United States of America, by virtue of the authority 
                vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the 
                United States, do hereby proclaim December 1, 2020, as 
                World AIDS Day. I urge the Governors of the States and 
                the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, officials of the other 
                Territories subject to the jurisdiction of the United 
                States, and all Americans to join me in appropriate 
                activities to remember those who have lost their lives 
                to AIDS and to provide support and compassion to those 
                living with HIV/AIDS.

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                thirtieth day of November, in the year of our Lord two 
                thousand twenty, and of the Independence of the United 
                States of America the two hundred and forty-fifth.
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                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 2020-26793
Filed 12-2-20; 11:15 am]
Billing code 3295-F1-P