Title: Supporting the goals and ideals of National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day.
Policy area: Health

Summary:
This resolution expresses support for the goals and ideals of National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 111 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 111

 Supporting the goals and ideals of National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness 
                                  Day.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            February 7, 2019

  Ms. Lee of California submitted the following resolution; which was 
            referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Supporting the goals and ideals of National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness 
                                  Day.

Whereas the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that in 
        the United States more than 1,100,000 people are living with HIV, and 15 
        percent do not know they are infected;
Whereas in 2017, approximately 38,739 people were diagnosed with HIV in the 
        United States;
Whereas since the beginning of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the United States, 
        racial and ethnic minorities have been disproportionately affected by 
        the disease;
Whereas African Americans are diagnosed with AIDS later than their White 
        counterparts, are confronted with greater barriers in accessing care and 
        treatment, and face higher morbidity and mortality outcomes;
Whereas African Americans account for nearly half of all those with AIDS who 
        have died in the United States since the beginning of the epidemic;
Whereas in 2015, 3,379 African Americans died of HIV or AIDS, accounting for 52 
        percent of total deaths attributed to the disease that year;
Whereas in 2014, HIV/AIDS was the 6th leading cause of death for Black men 
        overall and for Black women ages 25-34, and the 5th for Black men ages 
        35-44 and 4th for Black women ages 35-44 in 2014, ranking higher than 
        their respective counterparts in any other racial/ethnic group;
Whereas in 2016, African Americans represented 44 percent of all people living 
        with HIV in the United States, despite comprising just 12 percent of the 
        United States population;
Whereas in 2016, over 17,000 African Americans were diagnosed with HIV;
Whereas African-American gay and bisexual men are more affected by HIV than any 
        other group in the United States, accounting for a higher proportion of 
        HIV diagnoses, those living with HIV, those ever diagnosed with AIDS, 
        and HIV/AIDS-related deaths;
Whereas in 2016, more than half of African Americans diagnosed with HIV were gay 
        or bisexual men;
Whereas in 2016, among all gay and bisexual men who had received an HIV 
        diagnosis, African Americans accounted for the highest number (38 
        percent);
Whereas according to a 2016 study by the CDC, an estimated half of Black gay men 
        will be diagnosed with HIV in their lifetime, if current HIV diagnoses 
        rates persist;
Whereas homophobia, stigma, and discrimination pose major obstacles to HIV 
        testing, treatment and other prevention services for gay and bisexual 
        African-American men;
Whereas among all women diagnosed with HIV in 2016, 61 percent were African 
        American, despite comprising only 14 percent of the female population in 
        the United States;
Whereas African-American women face the highest risk of HIV and other sexually 
        transmitted infections (STIs) compared with women of other groups;
Whereas the HIV diagnosis rate for African-American women remains 16 times as 
        high as that of White women, and almost five times that of Hispanic 
        women;
Whereas among African-American women, the leading transmission category of HIV 
        infection is heterosexual contact, followed by intravenous drug use;
Whereas research indicates that the high incarceration rates of Black men may 
        contribute to the disproportionate rates of HIV infections among Black 
        women;
Whereas in 2010--the most recent data available--there were more than 20,000 
        inmates with HIV/AIDS in State and Federal prisons, a prevalence that is 
        4 times the rate of HIV in the general population;
Whereas among incarcerated populations, African-American men are 5 times as 
        likely as White men, and twice as likely as Hispanic/Latino men, to be 
        diagnosed with HIV;
Whereas among incarcerated populations, African-American women are more than 
        twice as likely to be diagnosed with HIV as White or Hispanic/Latino 
        women;
Whereas transgender women in the United States are at high risk for HIV;
Whereas more than half of all transgender people diagnosed with HIV are Black or 
        African American;
Whereas the Southern United States now experiences the highest burden of the 
        HIV/AIDS epidemic;
Whereas in 2017, the South made up 52 percent of the new HIV diagnoses in the 
        United States;
Whereas African Americans are severely and disproportionately affected by HIV in 
        the South, accounting for 53 percent of all new HIV infections in the 
        region;
Whereas socioeconomic issues impact the rates of HIV infection among African 
        Americans in the South and throughout the United States;
Whereas socioeconomic factors like income inequality, poverty, and lack of 
        access to HIV prevention education and basic health services, and 
        cultural factors like homophobia, transphobia, and racism all pose 
        significant challenges to combating the HIV/AIDS epidemic;
Whereas we are seeing signs of progress;
Whereas from 2011 to 2015, HIV diagnoses among African-American women fell by 
        nearly 20 percent and have also fallen sharply among African Americans 
        who inject drugs;
Whereas testing, education, counseling, and harm reduction practices are all 
        critical to prevent HIV;
Whereas life-saving treatment is also a proven prevention tool, and research 
        shows that antiretroviral drugs can reduce the amount of virus to 
        undetectable levels (also known as viral suppression), effectively 
        resulting in no risk of transmission of HIV;
Whereas in 2012, the Food and Drug Administration approved pre-exposure 
        prophylaxis (PrEP) as prevention for people who are HIV-negative;
Whereas PrEP can reduce the risk of HIV infection for HIV-negative people by up 
        to 99 percent;
Whereas in 1998, Congress and the Clinton administration created the National 
        Minority AIDS Initiative to help coordinate funding, build capacity, and 
        provide prevention, care, and treatment services within the African-
        American, Hispanic, Asian Pacific Islander, and Native American 
        communities;
Whereas the National Minority AIDS Initiative assists with leadership 
        development of community-based organizations (CBOs), establishes and 
        links provider networks, builds community prevention infrastructure, 
        promotes technical assistance among CBOs, and raises awareness among 
        African-American communities;
Whereas 2019 marks the twenty-first year of the National Minority AIDS 
        Initiative which has successfully established life-saving services and 
        programs to address the needs of those communities, families, and 
        individuals most impacted and burdened HIV;
Whereas in 2010, the Obama administration unveiled the first National HIV/AIDS 
        Strategy, which identified a set of priorities and strategic action 
        steps tied to measurable outcomes for moving the Nation forward in 
        addressing the domestic HIV epidemic;
Whereas in 2013, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People 
        (NAACP) released a manual of best practices for faith leaders to 
        mobilize communities, advocate for community support for people infected 
        with and affected by HIV/AIDS, and organize dialogues on HIV/AIDS as a 
        social justice issue as part of ``The Black Church and HIV: The Social 
        Justice Imperative'';
Whereas in July 2015, the ``National HIV/AIDS Strategy for the United States: 
        Updated to 2020'' was released and included actions and goals in order 
        to reduce HIV-related disparities and inequalities;
Whereas the Affordable Care Act's expansion of Medicaid and reforms to the 
        individual insurance market have helped lower the uninsured rates for 
        nonelderly African Americans by more than one-third between 2013 and 
        2016, leading to better health outcomes for African Americans living 
        with or at risk of HIV;
Whereas National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day was founded by 5 national 
        organizations in 1999 to provide capacity-building assistance to Black 
        communities and organizations; and
Whereas each year on February 7, individuals, organizations, and policy makers 
        across the Nation participate in National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day 
        to promote HIV education, testing, community involvement, and treatment 
        in Black communities: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) supports the goals and ideals of National Black HIV/
        AIDS Awareness Day;
            (2) encourages State and local governments, including their 
        public health agencies, and media organizations to recognize 
        and support such day, to publicize its importance among their 
        communities, and to encourage individuals, especially African 
        Americans, to get tested for HIV;
            (3) commends the work of AIDS service organizations, 
        community-based organizations, faith-based organizations 
        providers, community health centers and health departments that 
        are providing effective, evidence-based, prevention, treatment, 
        care, and support services to people living with and vulnerable 
        to HIV/AIDS;
            (4) supports the implementation of the National HIV/AIDS 
        Strategy and its goals to reduce new HIV infections, increase 
        access to care and improve health outcomes for people living 
        with HIV, reduce HIV-related disparities and health inequities, 
        and achieve a more coordinated national response to the HIV/
        AIDS epidemic;
            (5) supports reducing the impact of incarceration as a 
        driver of new HIV infections within the African-American 
        community;
            (6) supports reducing the number of HIV infections in the 
        African-American community resulting from intravenous drug use;
            (7) supports effective and comprehensive HIV prevention 
        education programs to promote the early identification of HIV 
        through voluntary routine testing, and to connect those in need 
        to clinically and culturally appropriate care and treatment as 
        early as possible;
            (8) supports appropriate funding for HIV/AIDS prevention, 
        care, treatment, research, and housing, including community-
        based approaches to fight stigma, discrimination, racism, 
        sexism, homophobia, and transphobia; and
            (9) encourages comprehensive prevention, treatment, and 
        care strategies that empower public health workers, educators, 
        faith leaders, and other stakeholders to engage their 
        communities to help decrease violence, discrimination, and 
        stigma towards individuals who disclose their sexual 
        orientation, gender identity, or HIV status.
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