12/13/2007

Contact: Robert Yule, Washington, D.C.
202-448-8456
ryule@pedaids.org

Washington, D.C.—The Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation today applauded Senators Christopher Dodd (D-CT) and Gordon Smith (R-OR) for introducing a bipartisan bill to help ensure that mothers and children are not left behind in the fight against HIV/AIDS. The Global Pediatric HIV/AIDS Prevention and Treatment Act would dramatically scale up efforts through the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) to prevent mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) of HIV and expand the number of children on treatment.

According to a 2007 UNAIDS report, 2.5 million children around the world are living with HIV/AIDS, with about 420,000 children infected in just the past year. The vast majority of these children are infected through mother-to-child transmission.

In resource-poor countries, a single intervention for mother and baby can reduce the risk of passing on the virus by 50 percent. The addition of more complex regimens can lower the rate even further. But despite these proven prevention methods, less than 10 percent of HIV-positive pregnant women in these countries currently have access to vital PMTCT services.

“The infection rate among children is so high because pregnant mothers and their babies are not getting the lifesaving medicines they need,” said Pamela W. Barnes, the Foundation’s president and chief executive officer. “We commend Senators Dodd and Smith for introducing legislation that would prioritize prevention and treatment for some of the most vulnerable in communities and countries that are being ravaged by this disease.”

The Global Pediatric HIV/AIDS Prevention and Treatment Act would set an aggressive, five-year target that 80 percent of pregnant women in PEPFAR countries receive HIV counseling and testing, with all of those testing positive receiving antiretroviral medicines that can significantly increase the chance that their children will be HIV-free. To ensure that access to PMTCT is made a top priority, the bill would establish an expert panel to provide recommendations to the Office of the Global AIDS Coordinator (OGAC) and Congress about how to remove barriers that are preventing the desperately needed scale-up of these services.

The bill also would set a target to ensure that the number of children treated for HIV/AIDS under PEPFAR keeps pace with the infection rate. Children currently account for 16 percent of new HIV infections, but only 9 percent of those on treatment under PEPFAR. To address this inequity, the bill would require OGAC to set a target that within five years, 15 percent of those receiving care and treatment must be children.

“It is unacceptable that, more than a decade after we learned how to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV, more than 1,100 children are infected every day,” Barnes added. “With this bill, Senators Dodd and Smith are demonstrating urgently needed political leadership and a strong commitment to ensure that women and children are not neglected in the struggle to end the global AIDS pandemic.”

The Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation urges Congress to include this legislation as part of the reauthorization of PEPFAR, which is scheduled for renewal in 2008.

To learn more about the Foundation’s recommendations for how PEPFAR can maximize protections for children and their families, please download our PEPFAR fact sheets.

###

About the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation
The Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation is a worldwide leader in the fight against pediatric AIDS. Its innovative research programs, collaborative training initiatives, advocacy efforts, and rapidly expanding international prevention and treatment programs are bringing dramatic changes to the lives of children worldwide.