Opinion: Biden’s budget boosts funds for future pandemics, but cuts them for current ones
All the evidence shows we don’t need to choose between stopping the current pandemics and preparing for the next one.
The Biden administration has rightly talked a lot about pandemic preparedness. And to its credit, the latest White House budget proposes new funding to stop future disease threats. In the introduction to the global affairs budget, the State Department celebrates how this money will help make the world better prepared.
But there’s a catch. A hundred pages later, alongside increased funding for future pandemics, you’ll see it actually suggests cutting funding from three of the biggest, longstanding pandemics we’re already facing. U.S. programs for global tuberculosis, malaria, and HIV/AIDS all get scaled back, including by nearly 10% for TB.
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