As a policy and advocacy organization we work to ensure there are the proper policies, programs, and funding to implement the Strategic Plans. We also refer to them in our work with the Congress, media, and the public to help educate them on the strategic plans and national goals included in each of the plans. We use them to measure our progress in meeting the goals. We not only use them to advocate before the Congress but also within government agencies and leadership to hold them accountable to ensure the goals are reached and that proper policies and programs are in place with sufficient funding.
Senate testimony on FY25 appropriations for HIV and hepatitis programs
Our nation can eliminate both HIV and viral hepatitis, but without investing additional resources to accelerate our efforts, we will continue to fall short of these ambitious goals. Increased investment–and certainly not cuts–in surveillance, education, prevention, and care and treatment will lead to further progress in reducing HIV and viral hepatitis, which include taking a syndemic approach to achieve maximum impact.
Concerns with Rhode Island Drug Cost Review Commission (S 2719)
Given the important nature of prescription drugs to the life-saving treatment of HIV and hepatitis B, and now the cure of hepatitis C and the prevention of HIV, we have long advocated for affordable access to prescription medications. We applaud your commitment to ensuring that beneficiaries can access and afford the prescription medications that their providers prescribe. While we support and share the committee’s intent to lower out-of-pocket costs for consumers, we believe the proposed Rhode Island Drug Cost Review Commission (S 2719) would neither benefit patients in the long run nor result in reducing patients’ costs.
Support letter to CA State Assembly Appropriations Committee for AB 2180 on cost-sharing
HIV+Hep strongly supports AB 2180. It simply requires that the copay assistance which beneficiaries receive counts towards their out-of-pocket obligations. By passing this law, California will join 20 other states (Arkansas, Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, West Virginia, and Virginia), Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia in protecting consumers by assuring their copay assistance will count towards cost-sharing obligations.
House testimony on FY25 appropriations for HIV and hepatitis programs
Our nation can eliminate both HIV and viral hepatitis, but without an infusion of new resources to accelerate our efforts, we will continue to fall short of these ambitious goals. While we realize strict spending caps are in place, increased investment – and certainly not cuts – in surveillance, education, prevention, and care and treatment will lead to further progress in reducing HIV and viral hepatitis, which include taking a syndemic approach to achieve maximum impact. The programs and funding increases detailed below are pivotal to our nation’s ability to end both these potentially deadly infectious diseases.