OPINION:
When the Trump administration announced its America First Global Health Strategy in September, it sent an unmistakable message: U.S. global health investments must deliver real, measurable value for the American people. I couldn’t agree more.
This strategy is designed to direct resources toward efforts that make America safer and stronger while expecting partner nations to step up as well.
Although the strategy is sound in principle, it still requires robust funding. Otherwise, it could become a hollow promise that hands strategic ground to China in regions where American credibility hangs in the balance. With malaria cases hitting 282 million in 2024, according to the World Malaria Report, and Beijing racing to expand its footprint across affected regions, this is no time to underfund our most effective soft power tool. Not to mention that with drug resistance rising and funding falling short, we are at risk of losing decades of progress.
The administration’s recent three-year, $4.6 billion pledge to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria is a welcome sign. Historically, the U.S. has pledged up to one-third of the total amount raised for the fund. That limit is imposed by law to ensure that other countries do their share. The U.S. should uphold this long-standing commitment and contribute the maximum amount allowable by law, encouraging other countries to do their part.
With global partners, the U.S. has saved more than 14 million lives and prevented more than 2.3 billion cases of malaria. Our work to combat malaria has also helped produce a $90.3 billion increase in gross domestic product across recipient countries. This means that fighting malaria abroad unleashes trade and results in more dollars available to purchase goods and services and to expand U.S. markets. That’s a nearly 6-1 return on investment.
Add that to President Trump’s plan to strengthen America’s biotechnology sector by encouraging partner countries to purchase U.S.-made vaccines, medicines and diagnostic tools, and we’ve got a real win-win scenario. A healthier world drives billions of dollars in economic growth, which in turn increases demand for American products, particularly in the agricultural and medical sectors.
Although many may assume malaria is a problem of a past era, malaria resurfaced inside our own borders last year for the first time in three decades, with local transmission in Florida, Texas and Maryland. The disease continues to reach us every year. With roughly 2,000 mostly imported cases and mosquitoes capable of carrying malaria in more than 30 states, we can’t look the other way.
Malaria control also reduces pressure on our borders. Unchecked outbreaks destabilize many regions around the world and contribute to the conditions that drive migrants to flee to our shores. Some estimates show that 1 in 10 migrants who arrive in the U.S. illegally come from a country where malaria is widespread. Targeted malaria investments help stabilize those regions and ease future migration flows.
Just as important, we need to strengthen U.S. influence in regions where China is racing to expand its footprint. Beijing is actively seeking influence in regions especially susceptible to malaria outbreaks, using debt-heavy development deals to buy influence and gain control. Under Mr. Trump, the U.S. is taking a different approach, built on transparency, accountability and results.
It’s now up to our government to provide the funding needed to ensure the success of Mr. Trump’s America First Global Health Strategy. Having served on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and as chairman of the Senate Appropriations subcommittee on labor, health and human services, education, and related agencies, I know how easy it is for targeted programs to get swept up in broader debates over foreign aid.
This investment is different. The stakes are clear: Malaria cases are rising, drug resistance is spreading, and China is expanding its influence across the very regions where American health partnerships have proved most effective. We can maintain our competitive advantage through proven programs that deliver measurable results, or we can retreat and watch adversaries fill the vacuum.
The administration’s America First Global Health Strategy charts the right course, but strategy alone won’t save lives or secure American interests. By funding the global fund at the maximum level allowed by law, Congress will ensure our malaria programs have the resources to maintain American leadership in regions where our competitors are circling.
This is what putting America first actually looks like: stopping threats early, opening markets for American products and ensuring that when vulnerable nations need a partner, they turn to Washington, not Beijing.
• Roy Blunt served in the U.S. House of Representatives (1997-2011) and the U.S. Senate (2011-2023), where he was chairman of the Senate Appropriations subcommittee on labor, health and human services, education, and related agencies. He is chairman of leadership strategies advisory services at HB Strategies and a fellow at the Bipartisan Policy Center, and he sits on the Tenet Healthcare board of directors.
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