Senate committee approves $2.4 billion for international AIDS programs

The Senate Appropriations Committee on Wednesday approved a $19.5 billion foreign aid bill for fiscal 2005 that includes $2.4 billion for international AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria programs. The amount approved was $200 million more than President Bush requested in his budget proposal but still less than the $3 billion made available through the five-year, $15 billion President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief. Most of the foreign AIDS spending will go to PEPFAR, which focuses AIDS efforts in 15 developing countries in Africa, the Caribbean, and Asia. The United Nations-backed Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria is set to receive $150 million in U.S. funds. The House previously approved $2.2 billion for international AIDS initiatives in fiscal 2005 in its foreign aid bill.