Curbing the Global AIDS Epidemic

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Abstract
President George W. Bush's recent pledge of $15 billion to fight human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and AIDS is another welcome sign of the increased priority placed on the global epidemic. The announcement calls for a strong focus on prevention along with increased access to treatment. The critical steps now are to ensure that these resources are appropriated rapidly and that they complement other critical health and development initiatives. The hope is that other donor governments will follow the lead of the United States with commitments to increased resources, because the global AIDS epidemic threatens to grow far graver. Stover et al. predict that the incidence of HIV infection will increase by 25 percent by 2005, with at least 45 million new infections between 2002 and 2010.1 Analysts at the National Intelligence Council anticipate an even more severe scenario, projecting at least 50 million new cases by 2010 in five countries alone — China, Ethiopia, India, Nigeria, and Russia.2