Tag Archives: HIV

Call in Day to Support ADAP and Ryan White Part C Emergency Relief Funding

Posted on by
3

By Emily McCloskey, Manager, Policy and Legislative Affairs, NASTAD

Call in Day to Support ADAP and Ryan White Part C Emergency Relief FundingACTION: Tell Senators Reid, Mikulski and Shelby to continue critical HIV funding in the FY 13 funding bill.

The $35 million for ADAP Emergency Relief Funding (ERF) awards and $10 million for Ryan White Part C, that President Obama announced on World AIDS Day 2011, is not currently included in the Continuing Resolution (CR) being considered by the Senate that will fund the government for the remainder of FY2013. This funding is currently awarded to 14 states and one territory (AL, AK, CA, CO, FL, GA, IL, MT, NE, NJ, SD, TN, WA, WI, VI). If this anomaly is not corrected, this funding will not be available for states and Part C clinics during FY2013. If funds aren’t restored, it could lead to an estimated 7,920 clients being removed from ADAP and many Part C funded HIV clinics reducing services and closing their doors to new patients. Continue reading →

National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day: Fighting HIV/AIDS through the Affordable Care Act

Posted on by
Reply

By Mildred Williamson, HIV/AIDS Section Chief, Illinois Department of Public Health and Amna Osman, Director, Division of Health, Wellness and Disease Control, Michigan Department of Community Health

Amna Osman, Director, Division of Health, Wellness and Disease Control, Michigan Department of Community Health

Amna Osman, Director, Division of Health, Wellness and Disease Control, Michigan Department of Community Health

Mildred Williamson, HIV/AIDS Section Chief, Illinois Department of Public Health

Mildred Williamson, HIV/AIDS Section Chief, Illinois Department of Public Health

National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day is a day to “Share Knowledge. Take Action.” As public health officials leading the fight against HIV and health inequities in our states, we recognize that the path to ending the HIV epidemic in the U.S. must include women and girls. So, today is a day to educate women and girls and their communities about the impact of HIV and offer a clarion call for us to take charge of our health. HIV/AIDS remains a serious public health challenge for women and girls. In 2009, women made up approximately a quarter of individuals living with HIV in the U.S. Furthermore, in 2009, African-American and Latina women accounted nearly three-fourths of new HIV infections among all women in the U.S. For African-American women and girls, the HIV infection rate in 2010 was 20 times that of White women and girls. As the backbone of our communities, women should share their stories and empower our girls and others around us. As said by the great poet Maya Angelou “There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.” Continue reading →

The Devastating Impact of Sequestration on ADAP in the South: Sequestration Would Leave Thousands of People without Access to Life-saving Medications

Posted on by
Reply

By Terrance Moore, Director of Policy and Health Equity, NASTAD

The Impact of Sequestration on ADAP in the SouthEditor’s Note: Since the publishing of the post below, sequestration has begun to take effect. While the cuts technically start March 1, the true effects of the cuts will not be felt until FY2013 funding is resolved. The federal government is currently funded under a continuing resolution until March 27. Sequestration’s effects will not be felt until final funding awards are made after March 27.

Today, we released a fact sheet on the devastating impact of sequestration on the AIDS Drug Assistance Program (ADAP). Sequestration, the automatic across-the-board spending cuts, originally created in the Budget Control Act of 2011, is currently scheduled to take place tomorrow, March 1. Sequestration will result in up to 15,000 clients losing access to life-saving medications they receive via ADAP. Up to half of the people that will be disenrolled live in the South, which as of 2010 accounted for 45 percent of all new AIDS diagnoses in the U.S. Continue reading →

Update: New Medicaid Essential Health Benefits Proposed Rule and What It Means for People Living with HIV and Hepatitis

Posted on by
1

By Amy Killelea, Senior Manager, Health Care Access, NASTAD

Amy Killelea, Senior Manager, Health Care Access, NASTADIn January, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) published a much-awaited proposed rule spelling out the “Essential Health Benefits” (EHB) requirements for newly eligible Medicaid beneficiaries (those ineligible for Medicaid under current Medicaid rules who will be eligible under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in 2014 if states opt to expand). Comments may be submitted through the federal regulations website and are due February 21, 2013. The rule addressed a number of areas, the following of which will have a significant impact on people living with HIV and viral hepatitis: Continue reading →

National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day: Spotlight on Responding to the Epidemic Among Black Gay Men/MSM

Posted on by
Reply

By Blake Rowley, Nicolas A. Rango Health Equity Fellow, NASTAD

Blake Rowley, Nicolas A. Rango Health Equity Fellow, NASTADThis February, we observe Black History Month, and today we recognize National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day (NBHAAD). Today represents an opportunity to mobilize members of the Black community to learn their HIV status and make decisions to live healthy lives, regardless of their HIV status. More than thirty years into the HIV/AIDS epidemic, Blacks are disproportionately affected across all stages of the disease (from diagnosis to viral suppression). Continue reading →