To begin with, this is objectively one of the most important bills among recent ones that is taken into the legislation process. This is due to the fact that from the very beginning of the increasing tendency of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) widespread, people who became infected by this illness are not only physically but also mentally destroyed. Moreover, when turning to the young generation, if a person became ill at a heavy stage, then the medical expenditures for this individual will only rise, while the cash flow to the government, imposed through taxes and insurances, immediately stops. As a result, this issue influences many spheres of society’s life, such as macroeconomics and medicine.
A brief description of the bill using bullet format:
- Type of the bill: Federal.
- Bill Number: H.Res. 461.
- Title: Commemorating the 40th anniversary of the HIV/AIDS epidemic.
- Purpose: While in the USA, over 770,000 individuals with AIDS have died from the onset of the HIV pandemic, around 16,000 fatalities of those diagnosed with HIV in 2018 (H. Res. 461, 2021)
- Intended group/population: The whole population of the United States, especially those who died or who are ill owing to the HIV/AIDS epidemic, their close friends, and family circle.
- The possible outcome is determined: One of the most significant theoretical impacts of implementing this bill into the governmental healthcare system is that it encourages significant and sustainable investment for HIV-impacted regions, and HIV-diagnosed individuals, in the U.S. and abroad to prevent the widespread of the illness and provide more qualitative health and treatment services, research programs (H.Res. 461, 2021).
- The main legislative sponsors are Barbara Lee, who is the primary sponsor, and 7 other original sponsors: Nanette Barragán, Bobby Rush, Janice “Jan” Schakowsky, Paul Tonko, Karen Bass, Ami Bera, and David Cicilline. In addition, all of them are Democrats, and overall, there were 34 votes in total, while 33 of the voters were Democrats, and only one was the Republican party representative.
When discussing the main reason for selection, it is important to note that this problem concerns all of the world’s population, and the risk exposure of to being HIV positive did not disappear even after 40 years after the first “wave” of this illness. To me, more specifically, the main way of being HIV positive is providing two people’s blood mixture, one of whom is infected (Pietrangelo, 2021). This process usually occurs during the unprotected sexual act or by neglecting the specific sterilization measures when some drugs should be directly sent to the blood. At the early stage of the illness, the person is usually HIV positive, which does not lead to mortal results in the nearest future. However, when the illness develops to a heavier stage, the person might become AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) positive, which leads to the mortal result in most cases. The biggest danger of HIV and AIDS is that it forces all facets of an individual’s life due to the limitations of personal activity and a great number of psychological diseases caused by the significant life direction changes.
While most of the U.S. population almost forgot about the presence of such illness, HIV and AIDS do not have a decreasing tendency, mainly owing to the impossibility of the vaccination process. Consequently, the new generation should be aware of the issues that HIV-positive people faced during the first boom of this illness in the United States society.
References
Commemorating the 40th anniversary of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, H.Res. 461 (2021).
Pietrangelo, A. (2020).A Comprehensive Guide to HIV and AIDS. Healthline.