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

Summary:
This resolution recognizes domestic and global progress towards ending the HIV epidemic and calls for additional efforts, with a particular focus on reducing HIV-related vulnerabilities of women and girls.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 974 Introduced in House (IH)]

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117th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 974

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


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 9, 2022

Ms. Lee of California (for herself, Ms. Titus, Ms. Williams of Georgia, 
Ms. Sewell, Ms. Matsui, Ms. Brownley, Mr. Rush, Ms. Norton, Mrs. Watson 
Coleman, Mr. Kilmer, and Mr. Costa) submitted the following resolution; 
  which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in 
   addition to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, for a period to be 
subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration 
  of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 
                               concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


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

Whereas 1,700,000 individuals are newly infected with human immunodeficiency 
        virus (HIV) every year, including 40,000 individuals in the United 
        States;
Whereas, in the United States, more than 770,000 individuals with acquired 
        immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) have died since the beginning of the 
        HIV epidemic, including nearly 16,000 deaths among individuals diagnosed 
        with HIV in 2018;
Whereas, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 
        Black/African-American, Latino, Asian-American, American Indian, Alaska 
        Native, and Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander individuals are 
        disproportionately affected by HIV in the United States;
Whereas, according to the CDC, Black/African-American, Latino, and White gay and 
        bisexual men and Black/African-American heterosexual women bear the 
        greatest burden of new HIV infections in the United States;
Whereas homophobia, transphobia, and biphobia are associated with minority 
        stress (high stress levels faced by members of stigmatized groups) and 
        may contribute to sexual behaviors that can increase the risk of HIV 
        transmission and create barriers to preventative care and treatment for 
        HIV/AIDS;
Whereas, among the 3,000,000 HIV testing events reported to the CDC in 2017, the 
        percentage of transgender individuals who received a new HIV diagnosis 
        was 3 times the national average for all individuals;
Whereas, despite significant gains, every week 6,000 adolescent girls and young 
        women are infected with HIV worldwide;
Whereas inequitable gender norms, transactional sex, sexual violence, sexually 
        transmitted infections (STIs), and early pregnancy continue to drive new 
        HIV infections in many countries and young women account for 61 percent 
        of new HIV infections among young individuals in sub-Saharan Africa;
Whereas, from 2015 to 2019, the rate of new HIV infections among Black/African-
        American women was 11 times that of White women and 4 times that of 
        Latina women;
Whereas, as of the end of 2019, an estimated 38,000,000 individuals globally 
        were living with HIV/AIDS, including 1,800,000 children;
Whereas, in the United States, almost 40 percent of new HIV infections occur in 
        individuals from 13 to 20 years of age;
Whereas, among new adolescent HIV diagnoses in the United States in 2019, 85 
        percent occurred in males, 12 percent occurred in females, and 3 percent 
        occurred in transgender females;
Whereas, in the United States in 2019, individuals from 13 to 24 years of age 
        comprised 21 percent of the 36,398 new HIV diagnoses;
Whereas 44 percent of individuals from 13 to 24 years of age living with HIV are 
        unaware of their HIV status;
Whereas Black/African-American youth are the group most affected by the HIV 
        epidemic, comprising 57 percent of new transmissions in individuals who 
        are 13 to 24 years of age;
Whereas, when a woman living with HIV receives comprehensive care before, 
        during, and after a pregnancy, the risk of passing HIV to the child is 
        less than 1 percent;
Whereas women and adolescent girls face serious challenges with respect to 
        prevention of infection due to inadequate access to evidence- and 
        rights-based, age-appropriate, and comprehensive sexuality and HIV-
        prevention education and tools, including--

    (1) pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and testing;

    (2) sexual- and gender-based violence prevention and care services; and

    (3) sexual and reproductive health information and services, including 
screening and treatment for STIs and access to a full range of 
contraceptive methods, including male and female condoms;

Whereas the Division of Adolescent and School Health of the CDC is the only 
        Federal program supporting HIV prevention for adolescents in schools;
Whereas the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act provides youth, including 
        those living with or affected by HIV/AIDS, better access to healthcare 
        coverage, more health insurance options, additional funding for sexual 
        education, a prohibition against denying individuals living with HIV 
        access to healthcare, and expanded access to Medicaid, which will 
        support more youth living with HIV to receive care;
Whereas, in 2021, the Biden administration, as stated in the 2022-2025 HIV 
        National Strategic Plan (HIV Plan), committed to reenergize and 
        strengthen a whole-of-society response to the HIV epidemic while 
        supporting people with HIV and reducing HIV-associated morbidity and 
        mortality;
Whereas the Biden administration's National Strategy on Gender Equity and 
        Equality states a commitment to ``address sociocultural factors that 
        compromise access to care for women and girls, rendering them more 
        vulnerable to HIV/AIDS, unattended births, and other poor health 
        outcomes--including by engaging men and boys as partners in addressing 
        gender inequities in health'';
Whereas the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations established a 
        global target to end AIDS as a public health threat by 2030, and the 
        United Nations is committed to achieve gender equality and empower all 
        women and girls;
Whereas the document published by UNAIDS and titled ``Global Aids Strategy 2021-
        2026--End Inequalities. End AIDS''--

    (1) reinforces the global need for ``tailored, combination HIV 
prevention packages . . . including scale-up of underutilized prevention 
approaches and community-led responses, such as comprehensive sexuality 
education, sexual and reproductive health (including contraception), harm 
reduction services, condoms, lubricants, PrEP and U=U, and emerging 
prevention tools, such as antiretroviral containing vaginal rings''; and

    (2) includes access to sexual and reproductive health services in the 
global targets of the Strategy;

Whereas Federal and State criminal law does not reflect the 4 decades of medical 
        advances and discoveries made with regard to transmission and treatment 
        of HIV/AIDS;
Whereas 2022 marks the 16th annual observance of National Women and Girls HIV/
        AIDS Awareness Day;
Whereas the 2021 National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day theme, ``You. 
        Me. WE. Changing the face of HIV'', highlights the role that everyone 
        can play in HIV prevention, including individuals, community 
        organizations, healthcare professionals, businesses, and faith 
        institutions;
Whereas the Office on Women's Health and the Office of Infectious Disease and 
        HIV/AIDS Policy of the Department of Health and Human Services, HIV 
        advocates, and individuals living with HIV play a critical role in 
        helping recognize the effect of HIV/AIDS on women and girls; and
Whereas each year on March 10, individuals, organizations, and policymakers 
        across the United States participate in National Women and Girls HIV/
        AIDS Awareness Day to increase awareness of, spark conversations on, and 
        highlight the work being done to reduce the incidence of HIV among women 
        and girls while showing support for those with HIV: Now, therefore, be 
        it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) recognizes the progress made over 40 years, and 
        recommits to bipartisan efforts, to end the HIV epidemic in the 
        United States and globally;
            (2) calls for greater focus on the HIV-related 
        vulnerabilities of women and girls, including those at risk of, 
        or who have survived or faced, violence or discrimination as a 
        result of the disease;
            (3) supports strong, sustained investment in prevention, 
        care, treatment services, and research programs, including 
        efforts to reduce disparities and improve access to life-saving 
        medications, for women and girls affected by HIV and 
        individuals diagnosed with HIV in the United States and 
        globally;
            (4) supports the implementation of the HIV Plan and its 
        goals to reduce new HIV infections, increase access to care and 
        improve health outcomes for women and girls living with HIV, 
        reduce HIV-related disparities and health inequities, and 
        achieve a more coordinated national response to the HIV 
        epidemic;
            (5) supports the investment of the United States 
        President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) in the 
        Determined, Resilient, Empowered, AIDS-free, Mentored, and Safe 
        (DREAMS) partnership, which aims to significantly reduce new 
        HIV infections among adolescent girls and young women through 
        evidence-based, multi-sectoral approaches;
            (6) encourages PEPFAR to increase investment in the DREAMS 
        partnership;
            (7) encourages youth-friendly, culturally responsive, 
        inclusive, and accessible healthcare services, especially 
        access without parental consent to medications such as pre- and 
        post-exposure prophylaxis and antiretroviral therapy, to better 
        provide for 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) encourages continued investment and engagement across 
        foreign assistance programs and diplomatic efforts to--
                    (A) address violence against women and girls;
                    (B) combat discrimination on the basis of sexual 
                orientation and gender identity; and
                    (C) recognize the inability of adolescent girls to 
                access a full range of sexual and reproductive health 
                services and rights as a key driver of the HIV 
                epidemic; and
            (9) promotes access to up-to-date, inclusive, culturally 
        responsive, and medically accurate information about HIV, such 
        as information on pre- and post-exposure prophylaxis, in sexual 
        education curricula to ensure that all individuals, including 
        women and girls, are educated about HIV, as called for in the 
        2022-2025 HIV National Strategic Plan.
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