House Republicans Propose $1 Billion in Cuts to Domestic HIV Programs

Prevention Basically Eliminated; Treatment Cut by 9 Percent

Washington DC… While full details haven’t been made public yet, the House Appropriations Committee released its FY27 funding bill for the Department of Health and Human Services, which proposes to decimate domestic HIV prevention programs at the CDC and cut HIV care and treatment by 8.75 percent.

Under the proposed bill, all ongoing CDC HIV prevention activities, totaling nearly $800 million, would be eliminated, while just maintaining the $220 million Ending the HIV Epidemic prevention component, which is only focused on certain parts of the country.  

The Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program would be cut 8.75 percent or $225 million, including the Ending the HIV Epidemic care and treatment component, which is currently funded at $165 million.

“We can’t imagine a country that is unable to conduct basic surveillance of a serious  infectious disease, educate and test people, and link them to appropriate treatment or prevention, including PrEP. That is what would happen if the House Republican bill were to pass,” commented Carl Schmid, executive director of the HIV+Hepatitis Policy Institute. “Sadly, these proposals will just continue the instability in our nation’s HIV prevention programs, which are primarily conducted at the state and local levels. We urge Congress to reject them, as they did last year.”

The CDC recently released new data that found that only 69 percent of people living with HIV are virally suppressed. Cuts to the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program will further set back our efforts to ensure people with HIV have the care and treatment they need to remain healthy and live.  State AIDS Drug Assistance Programs (ADAPs), which are funded through Part B of the Ryan White program, are instituting waitlists for antiretroviral medications. As people are losing their health insurance due to rising premiums and Medicaid work requirements are about to begin, we expect further financial strain on the Ryan White Program, which is intended to provide health care for low-income, under-insured, and uninsured people living with HIV.  It is for that reason the HIV community is requesting an increase of $175 million for ADAP to help address the expected funding shortfalls in at least 19 states.

Under the bill, funding for viral hepatitis would be combined with STD and opioid-related infectious disease programs into a block grant to states. The Minority AIDS Initiative would be cut by $36 million, reducing it to only $20 million.  Funding for the NIH would be increased by $100 million.  It is not known whether funding for the existing $157 million PrEP program being conducted by community health centers is included in the bill. That effort is another key component of President Trump’s Ending the HIV Epidemic initiative.

“It is very unfortunate that at a time when we have amazing HIV medications that can keep people healthy and alive and prevention tools, including PrEP, that are basically 100 percent effective, some of our government leaders are dismantling the health programs people depend on. Hopefully, as this bill progresses in the Congress, these reckless cuts will again be soundly rejected,” concluded Schmid.

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The HIV+Hepatitis Policy Institute is a national, non-profit organization whose mission is to promote quality and affordable healthcare for people living with or at risk of HIV, hepatitis, and other serious and chronic health conditions.