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Over 100,0000 Babies May Be Born With HIV Due To Trump Executive Order [1]
['Jordan King', 'Newsweek Staff', 'Jesse Edwards']
Date: 2025-01-31 09:09:32-05:00
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
More than 100,000 babies could be born with HIV over the next three months as a result of President Donald Trump's freeze of foreign aid, according to research from an AIDS foundation.
The report, released last week by the Andelson Office of Public Policy, a Washington-based arm of The Foundation for AIDS Research (amfAR), estimates that 135,987 babies will be born with HIV during a 90-day stoppage.
Newsweek has contacted the White House and amfAR, via email, for comment.
The Context
One of Trump's multiple executive orders was a pause on billions of U.S. dollars of foreign aid as part of a reassessment of America's financial commitments abroad, in line with the administration's "America First" stance.
The Reevaluating and Realigning United States Foreign Aid order says: "The United States foreign aid industry and bureaucracy are not aligned with American interests and in many cases antithetical to American values." The halt is in place for 90 days while foreign assistance is reviewed for alignment with these values.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio defended the pause on Thursday when he said: "The U.S. government is not a charity." On Tuesday, however, Rubio issued a waiver allowing exemptions for "lifesaving" assistance, including medicine, medical services, food and shelter, saying in an interview Thursday with SiriusXM host Megyn Kelly: "We don't want to see people die and the like."
But it is understood the funding has already been halted and it is not yet clear if these "lifesaving" exemptions apply to foreign HIV programs.
Newsweek has contacted the U.S. Department of State, via online contact form, to ask whether the exemptions apply to the President's Emergency Plan for Aids Relief (PEPFAR).
President Donald Trump signs executive orders in the Oval Office at the White House, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Washington. President Donald Trump signs executive orders in the Oval Office at the White House, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Washington. AP
What To Know
The stoppage has meant that organizations around the world have had to stop HIV treatment bought with U.S. funds from the President's Emergency Plan for Aids Relief (PEPFAR), which operates more than 190,000 care providers in 52 countries, most of which are in Africa, according to amfAR. Part of this care is providing ARV treatment (antiretroviral drugs which help to suppress the virus, slowing down the progression of HIV and reducing the risk of AIDS).
Currently, 679,936 pregnant women rely on PEPFAR for their ARVs and some will deliver during the 90-day stoppage—amfAR assumes this will be 50 percent.
Based on this, along with the expected HIV transmission rate of 40 percent when a woman is not on treatment, 135,987 babies are estimated to be born with HIV.
This amounts to 1,471 new HIV infections among infants a day, with the most affected countries being South Africa, Mozambique and Uganda. Newsweek has contacted the South African foreign ministry, via email, for comment.
"These babies, however, are highly likely to also go undiagnosed because infant HIV testing services are also being suspended due to the stop work order," amfAR researchers said.
What People Are Saying
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said: "Every dollar we spend, every program we fund, and every policy we pursue must be justified with the answer to three simple questions: Does it make America safer? Does it make America stronger? Does it make America more prosperous?"
Senior international development consultant Emilie J. Greenhalgh hit back at this when she wrote for Newsweek: "Non-Americans affected by this pause might look to whomever is willing to help them, regardless of who that actor might be. What a perfect time for Russia and China, who have already made strong inroads into Africa and Latin America, or organized and well-funded terrorist organizations, to step into the vacuum."
What Happens Next
It remains to be seen what Rubio's exemptions apply to and whether they will include PEPFAR. The next question will be whether PEPFAR meets America's new requirements for aid.
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[1] Url:
https://www.newsweek.com/hiv-foreign-aid-spending-africa-donald-trump-executive-order-2024125
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