Supporting the goals and ideals of National Youth HIV & AIDS Awareness Day.

IV 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. RES. 296 Supporting the goals and ideals of National Youth HIV & AIDS Awareness Day. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES APRIL 8, 2021 Ms. LEE of California (for herself, Mr. DANNY K. DAVIS of Illinois, Ms. WIL- SON of Florida, Ms. SEWELL, Mr. RUSH, Ms. CLARKE of New York, Mr. KHANNA, and Mr. TONKO) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce RESOLUTION Supporting the goals and ideals of National Youth HIV & AIDS Awareness Day. Whereas National Youth HIV & AIDS Awareness Day is a nationwide observance that calls on people to take action to invest in the health, education, and leadership of young people; Whereas more than 30 years into the epidemic, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that in the United States more than 1,200,000 people are liv- ing with HIV, and every year approximately 40,000 peo- ple acquire HIV; Whereas in the United States, almost 40 percent of new HIV infections are young people ages 13 to 20; VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:28 Apr 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR296.IH HR296 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HRES 296 IH Whereas 44 percent of young people living with HIV (YPLWHIV) ages 13 to 24 are unaware of their HIV status; Whereas African-American youth are most impacted by the epidemic, representing 57 percent of new transmissions in young people ages 13 to 24; Whereas African-American young men who have sex with men (YMSM) ages 13 to 24 comprise 51 percent of new transmissions among all YMSM; Whereas the Division of Adolescent and School Health (DASH) is the only Federal program supporting HIV prevention for adolescents in schools; Whereas the Nation’s largest Federal program dedicated to providing care and treatment for people living with HIV was named after Ryan White, a teenager from Indiana who helped educate a Nation about HIV and AIDS in the 1980s; Whereas the Ryan White Part D Program is one of the na- tional efforts to link YPLWHIV to medical care and sup- port services; Whereas the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) provides youth, including those living with or impacted by HIV and AIDS, better access to health care coverage, more health insurance options, additional fund- ing for sex education, a prohibition against denying peo- ple living with HIV access to health care, and expanded access to Medicaid which will support more YPLWHIV receiving care; and Whereas April 10 of each year is now recognized as National Youth HIV & AIDS Awareness Day: Now, therefore, be it VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:28 Apr 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR296.IH HR296 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HRES 296 IH Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 1 (1) supports the goals and ideals of National 2 Youth HIV & AIDS Awareness Day; 3 (2) encourages State and local governments, in- 4 cluding their public health agencies, education agen- 5 cies, schools, and media organizations to recognize 6 and support such a day; 7 (3) supports young people’s right to education, 8 prevention, treatment, and care, and to live without 9 criminalization, discrimination, oppression, and stig- 10 ma; 11 (4) promotes up-to-date, inclusive, culturally re- 12 sponsible, and medically accurate information about 13 HIV, such as pre-exposure prophylaxis, in sex edu- 14 cation curricula to ensure that all young people are 15 educated about HIV, as called for in the National 16 HIV/AIDS Strategy; 17 (5) supports removal of HIV laws that are sci- 18 entifically inaccurate and unfairly criminalize young 19 people living with HIV for behaviors that are con- 20 sensual or have no risk of transmissions; 21 (6) urges youth-friendly and accessible health 22 care services, especially access to medications such 23 as pre-exposure prophylaxis, post-exposure prophy- 24 laxis, and antiretroviral therapy without parental 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:28 Apr 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HR296.IH HR296 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HRES 296 IH consent, to better provide for the early identification 1 of HIV through voluntary routine testing, and to 2 connect those in need to clinically and culturally ap- 3 propriate care and treatment as early as possible; 4 (7) supports the increase of funding for pro- 5 grams that support people impacted by and living 6 with HIV, including CDC DASH, the Ryan White 7 HIV/AIDS Program, the Medicaid program, AIDS 8 Drug Assistance Programs (ADAPs), and programs 9 that support medical mentorship, peer navigation, 10 educating communities on testing and treatment op- 11 tions, and people accessing PrEP, and ensure a 12 smoother transition to adult HIV care; 13 (8) recommends a comprehensive prevention 14 and treatment strategy that empowers young people, 15 parents, public health workers, educators, faith lead- 16 ers, and other stakeholders to fully engage with their 17 communities and families to help decrease violence, 18 discrimination, and stigma towards individuals who 19 disclose their sexual orientation or HIV status; and 20 (9) calls for a generation free of HIV stigma in 21 a manner that prioritizes youth leadership and devel- 22 opment in order to ensure youth involvement in deci- 23 sions which impact their health and well-being as 24 well as advance a pipeline for the next generation of 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:28 Apr 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HR296.IH HR296 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •HRES 296 IH HIV and AIDS doctors, advocates, educators, re- 1 searchers, and other professionals. 2 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:28 Apr 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\HR296.IH HR296 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS