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News Release

Secretary Pledges Cooperation With China, Urges Openness
HHS assists China with AIDS, SARS prevention, surveillance and treatment

Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy G. Thompson met with Executive Vice Minister of Health Gao Qiang in Beijing on Sunday to pledge continued assistance by the United States to build the capacity of the People's Republic of China to detect, fight and treat diseases, and to urge openness among Chinese officials in the fight against SARS, HIV/AIDS and other diseases.

Secretary Thompson announced that he will detail a health official to the U.S. embassy in Beijing to coordinate all health activities and to serve as the HHS liaison with Chinese health officials. This official will be responsible for working with the Chinese government to ensure lines of communication stay clear and open. The new position will help coordinate HHS programs in China and advise the U.S. Ambassador on health matters.

"We look forward to building and strengthening our partnership with China in fighting AIDS, as well as emerging diseases such as SARS," Secretary Thompson said. "Our joint efforts will require a renewed emphasis of openness between our nations and with the international community to ensure everyone has accurate and timely information on disease outbreaks."

In May, after a meeting between President Bush and Chinese President Hu Jintao, Secretary Thompson pledged to assist China in its fight against SARS and other emerging diseases by directing scientists from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to work with their colleagues in China to strengthen epidemiology, surveillance, diagnosis and management of SARS and other diseases. At the height of the SARS crisis in China, HHS had 40 scientists from CDC on assignment in China as part of a team led by the World Health Organization to work on SARS.

This effort will take the form of a multiyear, multi-million dollar program of cooperation between HHS and the Chinese Ministry of Health aimed at strengthening China's fundamental public health infrastructure and improving China's capacity to manage not only SARS, but also other diseases, such as hepatitis, HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and cancer. Senior officials from both sides continue to meet to finalize the details of the program.

As part of the Department's commitment to cooperation in the field of epidemiology and outbreak investigation and response, HHS is partnering with China on the Field Epidemiology Training Program, an ongoing effort to create disease surveillance and outbreak investigation abilities in China.

This program is modeled on the CDC's Epidemic Intelligence Service. It was started in 2001 and has, to date, trained 30 Chinese field epidemiologists. Through experts based in China, HHS will also provide support to improve public health laboratories, information technology and research. The HHS activities in China will be integrated with similar efforts by the Department in other regions of the world to understand and control the impact of SARS and other infectious diseases.

In the meeting today, Secretary Thompson also congratulated Chinese health officials for receiving a $21 million, two-year grant from the Global Fund to Fight HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria last week for its battle against AIDS in Henan Province, and urged the central government to work closely with the fund staff and local and provincial officials to ensure the funds are spent in the most effective way to help those infected by the sale of tainted blood and plasma. Secretary Thompson is Chairman of the Global Fund Board. This is the third grant that China has received from the Global Fund, but the first for HIV/AIDS.

The United States and China have developed a strong working relationship on HIV/AIDS. In June 2002, Secretary Thompson and then-Minister of Health Zhang Wekang signed a Memorandum of Understanding on HIV Prevention and Control. Under the agreement, the NIH awarded a $14.8 million, five-year grant to the China Center for Disease Control.

In February, an HHS Global AIDS Program office opened in Beijing, and two CDC staff are now assisting their colleagues in the Chinese Ministry of Health. On Monday, CDC Director Dr. Julie Louise Gerberding will inaugurate the HHS GAP Program offices in Beijing and meet with Ministry of Health officials.

"We are ready and willing to do more with China in its fight against HIV/AIDS, but true success will only be achieved when all members of the community are welcome to take an active role in the nation's efforts," Secretary Thompson said. "That includes protecting the rights of people living with HIV/AIDS and treating them with dignity and respect."

Earlier this month, Secretary Thompson wrote to Vice Premier and Minister of Health Wu Yi to express concern over reports of mistreatment of people living with HIV/AIDS and to encourage the Chinese government to combat fear and discrimination associated with the disease.

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Last Revised: October 20, 2003