Obama Pledges Increased HIV/AIDS Fight

President-elect Barack Obama said Monday he would continue outgoing President Bush's international HIV/AIDS strategy and expand domestic efforts to fight the virus.
"We must also recommit ourselves to addressing the AIDS crisis here in the United States, with a strong national strategy of education, prevention, and treatment, focusing on those communities at greatest risk," Obama said in a video address to the Saddleback Civil Forum on Global Health. "This strategy must be based on the best available science, and built on the foundation of a strong health care system."
The Obama administration plans to implement national strategies to decrease the rate of HIV transmission, including establishing a universal health care system, targeting minority communities, and supporting the Ryan White CARE Act. The plan also calls for comprehensive, age-appropriate sexual education, in contrast to Bush policies that withdrew funding from organizations that did not teach abstinence-only education.