International aid budget cut may affect AIDS funding

The House on Thursday voted 215-212 for a $2.4 trillion fiscal 2005 budget that includes $4 billion less for international affairs than requested by the White House, leading some AIDS advocates to worry that the cut could affect funding of international AIDS programs, the Los Angeles Times reports. President Bush's proposed budget included $2.8 billion for international AIDS programs, including $200 million for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria. The Senate version of the 2005 budget that was passed earlier this month would boost foreign aid, including an additional $300 million for the global fund. The budget bills now go to a joint House-Senate committee to be combined into a single version to be sent to Bush for his approval.