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

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

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 296 Introduced in House (IH)]

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117th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 296

Supporting the goals and ideals of National Youth HIV & AIDS Awareness 
                                  Day.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 8, 2021

Ms. Lee of California (for herself, Mr. Danny K. Davis of Illinois, Ms. 
 Wilson of Florida, Ms. Sewell, Mr. Rush, Ms. Clarke of New York, Mr. 
 Khanna, and Mr. Tonko) submitted the following resolution; which was 
            referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
Supporting the goals and ideals of National Youth HIV & AIDS Awareness 
                                  Day.

Whereas National Youth HIV & AIDS Awareness Day is a nationwide observance that 
        calls on people to take action to invest in the health, education, and 
        leadership of young people;
Whereas more than 30 years into the epidemic, the Centers for Disease Control 
        and Prevention (CDC) estimates that in the United States more than 
        1,200,000 people are living with HIV, and every year approximately 
        40,000 people acquire HIV;
Whereas in the United States, almost 40 percent of new HIV infections are young 
        people ages 13 to 20;
Whereas 44 percent of young people living with HIV (YPLWHIV) ages 13 to 24 are 
        unaware of their HIV status;
Whereas African-American youth are most impacted by the epidemic, representing 
        57 percent of new transmissions in young people ages 13 to 24;
Whereas African-American young men who have sex with men (YMSM) ages 13 to 24 
        comprise 51 percent of new transmissions among all YMSM;
Whereas the Division of Adolescent and School Health (DASH) is the only Federal 
        program supporting HIV prevention for adolescents in schools;
Whereas the Nation's largest Federal program dedicated to providing care and 
        treatment for people living with HIV was named after Ryan White, a 
        teenager from Indiana who helped educate a Nation about HIV and AIDS in 
        the 1980s;
Whereas the Ryan White Part D Program is one of the national efforts to link 
        YPLWHIV to medical care and support services;
Whereas the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) provides youth, 
        including those living with or impacted by HIV and AIDS, better access 
        to health care coverage, more health insurance options, additional 
        funding for sex education, a prohibition against denying people living 
        with HIV access to health care, and expanded access to Medicaid which 
        will support more YPLWHIV receiving care; and
Whereas April 10 of each year is now recognized as National Youth HIV & AIDS 
        Awareness Day: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) supports the goals and ideals of National Youth HIV & 
        AIDS Awareness Day;
            (2) encourages State and local governments, including their 
        public health agencies, education agencies, schools, and media 
        organizations to recognize and support such a day;
            (3) supports young people's right to education, prevention, 
        treatment, and care, and to live without criminalization, 
        discrimination, oppression, and stigma;
            (4) promotes up-to-date, inclusive, culturally responsible, 
        and medically accurate information about HIV, such as pre-
        exposure prophylaxis, in sex education curricula to ensure that 
        all young people are educated about HIV, as called for in the 
        National HIV/AIDS Strategy;
            (5) supports removal of HIV laws that are scientifically 
        inaccurate and unfairly criminalize young people living with 
        HIV for behaviors that are consensual or have no risk of 
        transmissions;
            (6) urges youth-friendly and accessible health care 
        services, especially access to medications such as pre-exposure 
        prophylaxis, post-exposure prophylaxis, and antiretroviral 
        therapy without parental consent, 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;
            (7) supports the increase of funding for programs that 
        support people impacted by and living with HIV, including CDC 
        DASH, the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program, the Medicaid program, 
        AIDS Drug Assistance Programs (ADAPs), and programs that 
        support medical mentorship, peer navigation, educating 
        communities on testing and treatment options, and people 
        accessing PrEP, and ensure a smoother transition to adult HIV 
        care;
            (8) recommends a comprehensive prevention and treatment 
        strategy that empowers young people, parents, public health 
        workers, educators, faith leaders, and other stakeholders to 
        fully engage with their communities and families to help 
        decrease violence, discrimination, and stigma towards 
        individuals who disclose their sexual orientation or HIV 
        status; and
            (9) calls for a generation free of HIV stigma in a manner 
        that prioritizes youth leadership and development in order to 
        ensure youth involvement in decisions which impact their health 
        and well-being as well as advance a pipeline for the next 
        generation of HIV and AIDS doctors, advocates, educators, 
        researchers, and other professionals.
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