Chairman Mast on America First Global Health Strategy

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Brian Mast issued the following statement on the Global Health Compact provisions contained in the bipartisan State Department reauthorization advanced by the committee this week. 

“As Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, I have asked one simple question: how does every dollar spent abroad push forward U.S. interests? This question has been the driving force behind my vision to pass for the first time in decades a comprehensive State Authorization bill, which was passed through Committee just last night.

For some programming, like PEPFAR, the program grew into an unassailable never-ending handout. What was once a true “emergency” program is not any longer due. And yet, instead of acknowledging this success and adjusting to the current needs of the moment, many global health programs were allowed to run on autopilot without any foresight beyond the next annual report. This changes now.

My bill, H.R. 5300, requires all global health assistance to be conducted through a global health compact agreement, the America First Global Health Strategy promotes truly bilateral agreements. It establishes key metrics and planning on the front end for countries to take ownership of their own health systems and staffing over time, and it requires partner countries to pull their own weight with financial contributions.

This America First Global Health Strategy operates in tandem with our state authorization bill. I look forward to working closely with the State Department to support their vital work ensuring every taxpayer dollar goes towards U.S. interests and that health security threats are stopped before they arrive in the United States. I applaud the excellent work being done by Secretary Rubio and his team.”

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