HHS Awards $1 Billion in Ryan White Grants for Medical Care, ADAP Programs
HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson yesterday announced $1 billion in grants to help provide medical care, support services and prescription drugs to HIV/AIDS patients, according to an HHS release. The grants, funded under Title II of the Ryan White CARE Act, include $289 million in basic awards based on the number of people living with AIDS in each state and $693 million for the purchase of medications through state AIDS Drug Assistance Programs. The grants also include $7 million under the Minority AIDS Initiative and $10 million for states with "emerging communities" -- metropolitan areas with significant populations of people living with AIDS. The agency is expected to award another $21.4 million in grants for the Supplemental Drug Treatment Program at a later time. HHS Health Resources and Services Administration Administrator Elizabeth Duke said, "With this year's increase in ADAP funds, we expect to help 159,000 low-income people living with HIV/AIDS obtain the medications they need to stay healthy." Thompson said, "Poverty, unfortunately, is a common symptom of AIDS, but these grants to states will help us ensure that people with AIDS can get needed care and services," adding, "When insurance runs out, when savings are depleted, or when disability checks are needed to buy groceries instead of prescriptions, patients can turn to the programs funded by these grants to get life-sustaining medical treatment" (HHS release, 4/10).
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