CDC's FY 2017 Budget Request for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD and TB Prevention

March 3, 2016

On Tuesday, February 9, President Obama submitted his fiscal year (FY) 2017 budget to Congress. The request includes $1.127 billion for CDC’s National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention (NCHHSTP) programs. This request includes an increase of $5 million over the FY 2016 Enacted amount for viral hepatitis. It also includes policy changes to encourage the uptake of HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, and to improve monitoring of the HIV epidemic.

The increase of $5 million brings the total budget request for viral hepatitis to $39 million. CDC will use this increase to prevent viral hepatitis deaths, stop the hepatitis C epidemic among young people, and reduce mother-to-child transmission of hepatitis B and hepatitis C. With this increase, CDC will strengthen detection and response to new infections; establish a regional training center; accelerate adoption of HBV and HCV testing and treatment of persons living with viral hepatitis; and develop model projects for the elimination of HCV transmission and related mortality.

The budget continues to provide needed support for CDC’s programs to implement the updated National HIV/AIDS Strategy (NHAS). Along with continuing our efforts to implement high-impact prevention interventions through the health departments and in communities, it designates $20 million for a new demonstration project in FY 2017 to increase availability and improve utilization of PrEP in high-burden communities. The budget would also continue to allow federal funding for syringe services programs under certain circumstances, as established in the FY 2016 appropriation.

NCHHSTP’s adolescent and school health activities would be funded at the FY 2016 level, allowing us to continue important ongoing programs, as well as work begun this year to improve our capacity to evaluate school-based HIV prevention activities and assess the effectiveness of interventions to address adolescent risk and protective factors.

The budget also provides level funding for STD and TB prevention and control, enabling us to continue to provide critical support to state, local, and territorial programs to reduce these infections and associated illness and death.

Finally, the budget continues funding for two cross-cutting initiatives that include projects addressing NCHHSTP’s work. Both TB and STD are included in the Antibiotic Resistance Solutions Initiative. Funding received by NCHHSTP in 2016 will be used to improve detection of drug resistant TB, address anti-TB drug shortages, and compare the effectiveness of electronic directly observed therapy (DOT) with traditional, in person DOT. Funds received for STD will primarily support the deployment of rapid response teams when an outbreak of drug-resistant gonorrhea is identified in the United States. The Advanced Molecular Detection initiative has provided support for NCHHSTP projects to identify genetic markers of resistance, improve outbreak detection, and understand transmission networks.

Thank you for your continued commitment to preventing HIV, viral hepatitis, STDs, and TB. This budget offers CDC and you, our partners, the opportunity to make important strides toward our mutual goals. For more information about CDC’s HIV, viral hepatitis, STD and TB FY 2017 budget request, please see https://www.cdc.gov/budget/documents/fy2017/hivaids-factsheet.pdf.

Sincerely,

/Jonathan Mermin/
Jonathan H. Mermin, M.D., MPH
RADM and Assistant Surgeon General, USPHS
Director
National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
www.cdc.gov/nchhstp