Global health funding by the United States

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The United States is the largest donor of multilateral global health funds. [1] According to the Office of Management and Budget, the U.S. government contributes <1% of the federal budget for foreign aid including global health activities. [2] In 2023, the U.S. contributed 12.9 billion USD towards global health activities across several health verticals including HIV, Tuberculosis, Malaria and COVID-19. [3]

Contents

In 2024, total U.S. global health funding through regular appropriations reached approximately $12.3 billion in FY 2024, up from $5.4 billion in FY 2006. [4]

HIV

The allocations by the United States of over $110 billion, represents the largest investment ever made by any nation in a single disease. [5]

The U.S. began funding global HIV initiatives in 1986, with efforts increasing substantially in 2003 with the launch of the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) by U.S. President George W. Bush, the largest program dedicated to a single disease globally. PEPFAR accounts for the majority (89%) of U.S. global HIV funding, which includes support for UNAIDS and international HIV research. [6] Managed by the Department of State's Bureau for Global Health Security and Diplomacy, PEPFAR funding is detailed in annual congressional appropriations and also supports agencies like USAID, CDC, and DoD. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) also contributes to international HIV research. [7] From FY 2015 to FY 2024, global HIV funding represented 42%-50% of the U.S. global health budget, with FY 2024 allocations totaling $5.4 billion, including $4.9 billion for PEPFAR and $575 million for NIH research. [8]

The Biden administration recently announced a six percent cut to the PEPFAR budget for FY 2025 with a proposed budget $4.4 billion. [9]

Malaria

The U.S. has participated in global malaria efforts since the 1950s and is currently the second largest donor, following the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. The President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI), led by USAID and co-implemented with the CDC, drives U.S. malaria activities. Additional support comes from NIH and DoD. U.S. bilateral funding for malaria rose from $854 million in FY 2015 to about $1 billion in FY 2024, representing 9% of the U.S. global health budget. [10] Despite increases over the past decade, funding has stabilized in recent years.

Tuberculosis

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) initiated a global tuberculosis (TB) control program in 1998, the U.S. has become one of the leading donors to global TB control. U.S. bilateral TB funding, managed by USAID, includes contributions to the TB Drug Facility and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. Over the past decade, U.S. funding for TB has significantly increased, rising from $242 million in FY 2015 to $406 million in FY 2024, [11] now comprising about 3% of the U.S. global health budget of 12.9 billion USD.

The Global Fund

The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria is an independent, multilateral institution that funds HIV, TB, and malaria programs in low- and middle-income countries using contributions from public and private donors. The U.S., its largest donor since providing the founding contribution in 2001, includes these contributions as part of PEPFAR. [12] [13] However, U.S. contributions are subject to restrictions, including a funding match requirement. While U.S. contributions peaked at $2.0 billion in FY 2023, they decreased to $1.7 billion in FY 2024 due to these restrictions. [14] Additionally, the U.S. Congress allocated $3.5 billion in emergency funds in FY 2021 to mitigate COVID-19 impacts on HIV programs.

Global Fund investments have led to a 61% reduction in deaths from HIV, tuberculosis, and malaria since 2002, saving 65 million lives according to a 2024 analysis. [15] The Global Fund’s latest report highlights a 55% price reduction for bedaquiline, a key drug for treating drug-resistant tuberculosis, and a 25% drop in the cost of tenofovir disoproxil fumarate, lamivudine, and dolutegravir (TLD), the first-line treatment for HIV. [16] A new mosquito net, treated with a dual-active ingredient insecticide, is now 45% more effective against malaria. By leveraging its purchasing power, the Global Fund has been able to lower drug prices. It currently supports 25 million people on antiretroviral treatment, preventing 1.66 billion hospitalization days and 1.36 billion outpatient visits, saving about $85 billion. [17]

Maternal and Child Health

The U.S. has been involved in Maternal & Child Health (MCH) efforts since the 1960s and is the largest donor to global MCH activities. Funding, which includes support for polio eradication and contributions to Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance (GAVI), and UNICEF, is managed by USAID, CDC, and the State Department. From FY 2015 to FY 2024, MCH funding increased from $1.18 billion to $1.29 billion, driven mainly by increased allocations to GAVI and polio, while bilateral MCH funding remained steady. In FY 2024, MCH funding comprised 10% of the U.S. global health budget, making it the third largest category.

Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel, a senior advisor to President Obama in the early 2010s, recommended funding MCH initiatives at the expense of future funding increases for PEPFAR. Dr. Emanuel claimed that PEPFAR "is not the best use of international health funding," and "fails to address many of the developing world's most serious health issues." [18] Anand Reddi and Sarah Leeper rebutted Emanuel by stating "The idea that differing global health initiatives must compete with each other lacks not only ethical legitimacy but also scientific merit. Maternal and child health, need not to be framed in opposition to PEPFAR. Confronting illness in isolation -- whether by funding PEPFAR at the expense of programs that target maternal or child health or vice versa -- cannot be our way forward. We should be advocating for funding both PEPFAR and maternal and child health together instead of favoring one program over another." [19]

In 2024, the U.S. government announced a new $20 million PEPFAR Youth Initiative to combat HIV/AIDS among young people; the initiative aims to improve HIV prevention, testing, and treatment services, focusing on youth in high-burden countries and addressing gaps in care and support for young people living with HIV. [20]

mPox 2024

The United States has provided an additional $17 million USD to support clade I mpox preparedness and response in Central and Eastern Africa. [21] This funding is focused on enhanced surveillance, risk communication, community engagement, laboratory supplies, diagnostics, clinical services, and vaccine planning. [22]

Health Systems Strengthening

In 2024, U.S. Global Health Funding includes $10 million for the Global Health Worker Initiative, the first time Congress has provided funding for this initiative that increase education and training of healthcare workers in resource limited settings. [23]

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief</span> United States governmental initiative

The United States President's Emergency Plan For AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) is the global health funding by the United States to address the global HIV/AIDS epidemic and help save the lives of those suffering from the disease. The U.S. allocation of over $110 billion marks the largest investment by any country has ever made towards combating a single disease. Launched by U.S. President George W. Bush in 2003, as of May 2020, PEPFAR has provided cumulative funding for HIV/AIDS treatment, prevention, and research since its inception, making it the largest global health program focused on a single disease in history until the COVID-19 pandemic. PEPFAR is implemented by a combination of U.S. government agencies in over 50 countries and overseen by the Global AIDS Coordinator at the United States Department of State. As of 2023, PEPFAR has saved over 25 million lives, primarily in sub-Saharan Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria</span> International organization

The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria is an international financing and partnership organization that aims to "attract, leverage and invest additional resources to end the epidemics of HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria to support attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals established by the United Nations". This multistakeholder international organization maintains its secretariat in Geneva, Switzerland. The organization began operations in January 2002. Microsoft founder Bill Gates was one of the first donors to provide seed money for the partnership. From January 2006 it has benefited from certain US Privileges, Exemptions, and Immunities under executive order 13395, which conferred International Organizations Immunities Act status on it.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Unitaid</span> Global health initiative

Unitaid is a global health initiative that works with partners to bring about innovations to prevent, diagnose and treat major diseases in low- and middle-income countries, with an emphasis on tuberculosis, malaria, and HIV/AIDS and its deadly co-infections. Founded in 2006, the organization funds the final stages of research and development of new drugs, diagnostics and disease-prevention tools, helps produce data supporting guidelines for their use, and works to allow more affordable generic medicines to enter the marketplace in low- and middle-income countries. Hosted by the World Health Organization (WHO) in Geneva, Unitaid was established by the governments of Brazil, Chile, France, Norway and the United Kingdom.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States–Zambia relations</span> Bilateral relations

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Catholic Medical Mission Board</span>

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References

  1. ↑ "The 2024-2025 Replenishment Traffic Jam: Are We Headed for a Pileup?". Center for Global Development. Retrieved 13 July 2024.
  2. ↑ Ingram, George (2 October 2019). "What every American should know about US foreign aid". Brookings Institution.
  3. ↑ "Breaking Down the U.S. Global Health Budget by Program Area". Kaiser Family Foundation. Retrieved 13 July 2024.
  4. ↑ "The U.S. Government and Global Health". KFF. 2024-10-15. Retrieved 2024-10-23.
  5. ↑ "PEPFAR: Two Decades of Global Progress Against HIV | Aspen Ideas". Aspen Ideas Festival. Retrieved 2024-10-27.
  6. ↑ "The U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR)". Kaiser Family Foundation. Retrieved 13 July 2024.
  7. ↑ "NIH Strategic Plan for HIV and HIV-Related Research". Office of AIDS Research. National Institutes of Health. Retrieved 13 July 2024.
  8. ↑ "Update on PEPFAR's Programming Budget for 2024/2025". U.S. Department of State. Retrieved 13 July 2024.
  9. ↑ Paun, Carmen (2 July 2024). "Biden administration plans major cuts to AIDS relief programs in Africa". Politico.
  10. ↑ "The President's Malaria Initiative and Other U.S. Government Global Malaria Efforts". Kaiser Family Foundation. Retrieved 13 July 2024.
  11. ↑ "USAID Secures $18 Million in New Funding to Accelerate Efforts to End Tuberculosis". USAID. 14 March 2024.
  12. ↑ "United States". Government and Public Donors. The Global Fund. Retrieved 13 July 2024.
  13. ↑ "FACT SHEET: President Biden Raises Record Level Funding for Global Health through Global Fund Seventh Replenishment". The White House. 21 September 2022.
  14. ↑ "U.S. Global Fund Profile". The Global Fund. Retrieved 13 July 2024.
  15. ↑ "Big Wins - And Challenges - For Global Fund In Tackling HIV, TB And Malaria - Health Policy Watch". 2024-09-19. Retrieved 2024-09-19.
  16. ↑ "Results Report 2024". www.theglobalfund.org. Retrieved 2024-09-19.
  17. ↑ "Results Report 2024 - Video". www.theglobalfund.org. Retrieved 2024-09-19.
  18. ↑ Denny, Colleen; Emanuel, Ezekiel (2008). "US health aid beyond PEPFAR: the Mother & Child Campaign". JAMA. 300 (17): 2048–2051. doi:10.1001/jama.2008.556. PMID   18984893.
  19. ↑ Leeper, Sarah; Reddi, Anand (2010). "United States global health policy: HIV/AIDS, maternal and child health, and The President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR)". AIDS. 24 (14): 2145–2149. doi:10.1097/QAD.0b013e32833cbb41. PMID   20606571.
  20. ↑ "New PEPFAR Youth Initiative: $20 Million to Address HIV/AIDS Among Youth". United States Department of State. Retrieved 2024-10-19.
  21. ↑ Affairs (ASPA), Assistant Secretary for Public (2024-08-14). "United States Government's Response to the Clade I Mpox Outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Other Countries in the Region". www.hhs.gov. Retrieved 2024-08-18.
  22. ↑ Reporter, Pandora Dewan Senior Science (2024-08-15). "US responds to mpox outbreak". Newsweek. Retrieved 2024-08-18.
  23. ↑ "FACT SHEET: Global Health Worker Initiative (GHWI) Year Two Fact Sheet". The White House. 15 May 2024. Retrieved 13 July 2024.
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