Faith-Based Coalition for the Global Fund Sends Letter to Congress Requesting Funding for 4th COVID-19 Supplemental

On June 12, the Faith-Based Coalition for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria sent a letter signed by 192 faith leaders calling on U.S. leadership to address the pandemic's impacts and protect against a future resurgence. As members of Congress review a 4th COVID Supplemental package, the leaders of faith urged their representatives to consider robust international funding for the COVID-19 pandemic, including resources to mitigate the impact on those suffering from AIDS, TB, and malaria with a U.S. contribution to the Global Fund’s COVID-19 Response Mechanism.

Researchers at the Imperial College London estimate that in heavily affected countries, COVID-19 could result in a 10% increase in death from HIV, 20 percent in TB and 36 percent in malaria. The pandemic could devastate decades of progress by the Global Fund, saving more than 32 million lives to date, surging deaths in AIDS, TB, and Malaria to numbers we haven’t seen since its peak if we do nothing.

Leaders of faith, deeply concerned with the wellbeing of our neighbors both here and around the world, offer their voices in this letter to uplift these vulnerable populations worldwide.