Dec. 15 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. government should double its health aid to poor countries by 2012 and designate a White House global health czar, government medical advisers said today.

President-elect Barack Obama should boost yearly international health assistance to $15 billion by 2012, and create a White House committee to coordinate the aid with other areas of international affairs, such as trade, the environment and security, the U.S. Institute of Medicine report said.

Fulfilling commitments to programs such as President George W. Bush’s $45 billion, five-year AIDS program will be crucial during a global economic slump likely to have serious repercussions for poor countries, the advisers said. Health programs offer a way to show the U.S. “fundamentally believes in the value of better health for all,” they said.

“America’s reputation in the world has been higher in the past than it is right now,” said Harold Varmus, president and chief executive officer of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York, who was co- chairman of the advisory panel. “This is a good thing to do just for basic ethical reasons, and it boosts the economies of nations that receive health assistance.”

The President’s Emergency Program for AIDS Relief, or PEPFAR, provides drugs for almost two-thirds of the 3 million people now getting treatment for HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, in Africa, where the disease is widespread.

Investments ‘Working’

“This report sends a critical message at a critical time: America’s investments in global health are working,” said Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft Corp. and chairman of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the world’s largest private charity. “By making global health a top priority, even in difficult economic times, our nation’s leaders can make a phenomenal statement about America’s commitment to a better world for all.”

Still, the U.S. spends far less on health assistance than other countries on a per capita basis, and should work to match them, Varmus said. The U.S. allocates about 0.16 percent of gross national income to development aid, or about one-third of the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals target of 0.54 percent, the report found. Norway, Sweden, Luxembourg and Denmark already exceed the goal, and 15 other industrialized countries give proportionately more than the U.S., it said.

Economic Stress

“We’re just drawing attention to the fact that we do under-spend,” Varmus said. “Even in times of economic stress, especially in times of economic stress, we need to pay attention to the poor of the world. This is the time to make the investments.”

Nick Shapiro, a spokesman for the Obama transition team, declined to comment in an e-mail.

The Institute of Medicine, part of the National Academies of Science, assembles panels of outside experts to advise the government on specific issues. Previous panels have advised the government to reduce deaths from medical errors, and recommended higher taxes on cigarettes to curb smoking-related deaths.

To contact the reporter on this story: John Lauerman in Boston at jlauerman@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: December 15, 2008 15:00 EST