Congresswoman McCollum's Remarks: “The Elimination of New HIV Infections in Children by 2015 and Keeping Mothers Alive: A Call to Action”

[as prepared]

Thank you Mothers2Mothers International and Management Sciences for Health for organizing this briefing. Mothers and children around the world need access to quality health care. As a global community, we must do more to ensure all children and their mothers have access to the support, information, and health care they need to grow-up healthy and strong.

I was encouraged by the United Nations High Level Meeting on AIDS in June. As you heard today, world leaders announced a global call to action to eliminate mother-to-child transmission of HIV by 2015. This goal may sound ambitious, but it is achievable if we work together.

We already know how to prevent mother-to-child transmissions of HIV. The barrier isn't medical discovery, but political will.

Thank you to the panelists for coming today and sharing your expertise on this issue. I share your commitment to eliminating pediatric HIV and making the health of mothers and their children a global health priority.