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THIS ISSUE AVAILABLE ONLINE WITH EXPANDED INFORMATION AND PHOTOS
AT:
www.hhs.gov/news/newsletter/weekly
IN THIS ISSUE:
1) Secretary Thompson addresses National Youth Summit
2) Secretary Thompson signs a Memorandum of Understanding with
the Chinese Health Minister
3) Secretary Thompson to attend the XIV International AIDS Conference
in Barcelona
4) Thompson Says: Leave the Fireworks to the Professionals
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Secretary Thompson addresses National Youth Summit
HHS Secretary Tommy G. Thompson presented the 2001 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System report, which shows positive trends in the behavior of America's youth, on June 27th, 2002. He spoke before the National Youth Summit in Washington, DC.
"[The report] shows that we still face serious challenges in making our youth safe and responsible," the Secretary said. "But it also shows that there's a lot to be proud of. American youth today are more responsible and more informed than they have been in a long while. Drug use is decreasing. Smoking rates are down. Sexual responsibility is on the rise. Seatbelt usage is up. And youth are less likely than ever to ride with a drunk driver."
Thompson noted that in a few areas, the trends are less positive -- including a significant drop since 1991 in the percentage of students who receive daily physical education instruction -- increasing their risks of obesity and related illnesses. The percentage of young people who are overweight has more than doubled in the past 20 years to about 8 million.
The Secretary emphasized that physical education was a key element in the HHS Prevention initiative. He explained that "preventive measures like simple exercise can ward off diabetes, depression, high blood pressure, and heart disease. And that's more important than you might think. There's a perception that these are diseases of the middle-aged and the old. Sadly, this is increasingly untrue. Cardiovascular problems, for example, aren't just worries for people in their 50s and above. Type 2 diabetes, once a disease of the middle-aged and elderly, is now setting in with young people, and even children. The increase in diabetes is directly related to the increase in obesity."
The National Youth Summit was held from June 26-28 and was sponsored by eight Cabinet departments and 17 private groups concerned with America's youth. It was coordinated by the HHS Administration for Children and Families.
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Secretary Thompson signs a Memorandum of Understanding with the Chinese Health Minister
HHS Secretary Tommy G. Thomson signed a memorandum of understanding on HIV/AIDS with the Chinese Minister of Health Zhang Wenkang on Friday, June 28th.
The memorandum states that the United States has agreed to provide assistance to the Chinese government in HIV prevention and capacity building through the Global AIDS program.
Furthermore, the National Institutes of Health are providing the Chinese Centers for Disease Control and Prevention a $14.8 million award to strengthen its ability to conduct multidisciplinary research on promising strategies for the prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS.
The Secretary noted that the memorandum was a continuance of a longstanding relationship between the United States and China to fight the spread of AIDS.
"Thousands of Chinese scientists have trained in the U.S. and returned to take up positions in Chinese academic institutions," he said.
Among those Chinese scientists was Professor Shao Yiming, also present at the signing, who worked at NIH and now heads the Chinese National Center for AIDS Prevention and Control.
Chinese Ambassador Yang Jiechi, NIH Director Dr. Elias Zerhouni, NIAID Director Dr. Anthony Fauci, U.S. Undersecretary of State for Global Affairs Paula Dobriansky and Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Donald Keyser also were present.
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Secretary Thompson to attend the XIV International AIDS Conference in Barcelona
retary Thompson will lead the U.S. delegation to the 14th International AIDS Conference in Barcelona, Spain, and will highlight the United States' leadership role in fighting the spread of HIV/AIDS, especially in the areas of science, financial support, and public and private partnerships.
"In developing countries, HIV/AIDS threatens ecnomies, social systems and entire generations of families," Secretary Thompson said. "As a country, the United States is committed to working with other nations and the private sector to achieve scientific breakthroughs and build a stronger infrastructure to deliver better treatments to those who need it most."
The conference, which opens July 7, follows Secretary Thompson's trips in April to four African nations and the Caribbean to learn firsthand the needs of developing countries as they combat HIV/AIDS and how best to allocate American resources. The Secretary will spend three days at the conference.
The Bush Administration has requested $1.12 billion for international prevention, research and assitance programs for fiscal year 2003 - a 54 percent increase over just two years ago that makes the United States by far the global leader in HIV/AIDS spending.
Overall, the United States also has committed $500 million for the Global Fund to Fight Malaria, TB and HIV/AIDS, including $225 million from HHS.
The combined domestic and international budget for HIV/AIDS in fiscal year 2003 will be $16.1 billion - a 7.21 percent increase over fiscal year 2002 and a $13.6 percent increase over fiscal year 2001.
Building on that unprecedented commitment to fighting HIV/AIDS, President Bush announced last month a new $500 million International Mother and Child HIV Prevention Initiative that seeks to prevent the transmission of HIV/AIDS from mothers to infants, a program that will be implemented by HHS and USAID.
Through a combination of providing care and drug treatment and building the health care delivery infrastructure, this new initiative is expected to reach 1 million women a year and reduce mother-to-child transmission by 40 percent within five years in 12 African countries and the Caribbean.
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Thompson Says: Leave the Fireworks to the Professionals
HHS Secretary Tommy G. Thompson urged Americans to be careful this Fourth of
July as they celebrate the anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of
Independence. First and foremost, this means FOIA¬ Privacy
¬ Disclaimers¬ Accessibility
Last updated 28 June 2002
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