To: The United States House of Representatives and The United States Senate
Reauthorize the Ryan White CARE Act
Our goal is partial reauthorization/legislation that will address eliminating gaps in the HIV Care Continuum, which requires that we prioritize services that do this best: HIV and STD testing, medical case management to help link and retain people in care, and treatment adherence services to keep people healthy and HIV viral loads suppressed.
Reauthorizing the CARE Act to focus on providing these services is critical to achieving this goal. The program already provides HIV testing, linkage and retention services, and treatment adherence services to nearly 50% of all people with the disease in the U.S.
Even with the implementation of health care reform, we need to expand these services because other providers in our healthcare system, such as Medicaid and private insurance, do not cover them and do not have the HIV expertise of the CARE Act.
Reauthorizing the CARE Act to focus on providing these services is critical to achieving this goal. The program already provides HIV testing, linkage and retention services, and treatment adherence services to nearly 50% of all people with the disease in the U.S.
Even with the implementation of health care reform, we need to expand these services because other providers in our healthcare system, such as Medicaid and private insurance, do not cover them and do not have the HIV expertise of the CARE Act.
Why is this important?
"If you continue to do what you've always done, you will always get what you've always gotten"...and in the case the HIV epidemic is rising in the South. The gaps in care, testing, linkage to care, and retention services must be addressed to reduce the rising new rates of infection.