Increased U.S. Donation to Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria a ‘Moral Imperative,’ Editorial Says

The HIV/AIDS epidemic in sub-Saharan Africa is "not a medical crisis as much as an economic and political one," a Salt Lake Tribune editorial says. HIV/AIDS, like diabetes, is "treatable though not curable," and the cost of HIV/AIDS treatments, which could be reduced further with "effort and commitment," should not prohibit their distribution, the editorial states. The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria has been set up to link donor countries with HIV/AIDS organizations in sub-Saharan Africa and elsewhere, but donor nations' "political will" to donate sufficient funds is still "lacking," the Tribune says. The United States has a "clear-cut ... moral imperativ[e]" to donate $3.5 billion each year to the Global Fund to ensure that the "international effort to contain [HIV/AIDS]" does not "collapse for lack of funds," the editorial concludes (Salt Lake Tribune, 9/9).