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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 22, 2009
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Contact: Zach Goldberg
202-225-5801 (office) |
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HOLT SUPPORTS RYAN WHITE HIV/AIDS TREATMENT EXTENSION ACT
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Washington, D.C. – U.S. Rep. Rush Holt (NJ-12) Wednesday issued the following statement after the House passed the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Extension Act, which passed the House of Representatives today by a vote of 408 to 9. The Senate passed the bill earlier this week so the bill now goes to President Obama for his signature into law. The bill makes vital investments in HIV/AIDS research and care.
I rise today to express my strong support for S. 1793, the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Extension Act.
We all know the troubling statistics. Since its inception, AIDS has claimed almost 600,000 lives in the United States. Over 1 million Americans are living with HIV/AIDS today. Recent data from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) suggest that HIV diagnoses are increasing, by as much as 15 percent in three years. As the AIDS crisis has continued year after year, it has become more and more difficult for anyone to claim that AIDS is someone else's problem.
Since 1990, the Ryan White program has helped establish a comprehensive, community-based continuum of care for uninsured and under-insured people living with HIV and AIDS, including access to primary medical care, pharmaceuticals, and other services. In New Jersey, Ryan White funding helps support the state’s AIDS Drug Assistance Program, which in 2008 provided almost 5,000 patients with needed HIV medications.
As we debate health care reform, it is important that we keep the needs of HIV/AIDS patients in mind. I have spoken out in favor of reforming Medicare Part D to work seamlessly with state AIDS Drug Assistance Programs and to ensure these patients have continuous access to their needed anti-retroviral prescriptions. These provisions are currently included in America’s Affordable Health Choices Act, and I look forward to working with my colleagues to strengthen these policies for HIV/AIDS patients.
By passing S. 1793 today, we will affirm our commitment to people living with HIV/AIDS and their families. We also will be affirming our dedication to sound public policy. By reauthorizing the Ryan White Act, we will give hope and a real chance for a better life to thousands of HIV/AIDS victims.
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