FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 28, 2006

CONTACT: Brendan Daly/Jennifer Crider 202-226-7616

Pelosi: Reauthorization of Ryan White CARE Act Fails to Provide Adequate Funding

Washington, D.C. – House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi released the following statement today in opposition to H.R. 6143, the reauthorization to the Ryan White CARE Act, because it would fail to provide adequate funding for the treatment of HIV/AIDS patients:

“Nineteen years ago, I came to Congress to fight AIDS, a disease that has taken nearly 18,000 lives in my city of San Francisco alone.  We have lost friends, family, and loved ones, but we have not lost our will to fight this terrible disease.  This year, we mark the 25th anniversary of the first diagnosis of AIDS —a stark reminder that this epidemic is still among us, and that our work is not done.

“Yet as we grieve for those we have lost, we are filled with hope as we see the strength of those who are fighting and living full lives with HIV and AIDS.  This would not be possible without the help of the federal government through initiatives such as the Ryan White CARE Act.  The act has been instrumental in our fight to defeat AIDS. It has greatly improved the quality and availability of health care services for people living with and affected by HIV and AIDS.  I was proud to be a part of the creation of the Ryan White CARE Act.

"Unfortunately, I must oppose the reauthorization of this act.  There are a number of good provisions in this bill, including the recognition of emerging communities and the use of actual living AIDS counts rather than estimated living AIDS cases.  That change will benefit many communities, including my constituents in San Francisco.

“However, when it comes to meeting the needs of people living with AIDS, our mantra should be the same as the physicians who care for all patients: first, do no harm. The primary problem with this legislation is that it fails to provide adequate funding for the treatment of HIV/AIDS patients.

“Had this Administration and the Republican-controlled Congress made a priority of funding the Ryan White program over the last several years, I would offer my full support of this bill.  But they have not, and I cannot support this bill.

“Funding in this bill simply won’t be able to meet the current demand for HIV/AIDS care in the United States.  Under this reauthorization, San Francisco, with the highest per capita caseload of people living with AIDS in the country, stands to lose almost $30 million over the next five years.  That is a far cry from the bipartisan consensus we were able to achieve on this issue between 1993 and 2001.  During that time, funding – adjusted for both inflation and caseload growth – under the Ryan CARE Act increased by 70 percent.  Since 2001, funding has declined by 35 percent. 

“The problem is not just that one part of the country gets too much money and some other parts of the country are left behind.  Instead, the major problem with this bill is that people suffering from this disease – and those caring for them – are being forced to compete for pieces of an ever-shrinking pie.

“If funding for this Act had simply kept pace with the number of people with AIDS and inflation, my city and all other cities and states would be getting increases in funding instead of grappling with how to they can stretch – and where they will have to sacrifice – in meeting the growing demand for services.  In fact, the impact of the cuts will be compounded, because in San Francisco, these funds form the basis for matching funds from the city.

“Due in no small part to this federal, state and local investment, more people are living with HIV and AIDS now than dying from it.  That is remarkable.  As the epicenter of the epidemic, San Francisco has experienced terrible loss of life – but from that loss, my city has created a standard of care that has been a model for the nation.  But our problem has not gone away.  There are more people living with AIDS in the San Francisco’s area than at any point in the epidemic’s history.

“This legislation has far-reaching implications for the stability of HIV/AIDS funding in our state and cities.  The programs funded by the Ryan White Care Act have literally been life-savers for people who live with HIV/AIDS.  It has provided critical support to the cities that have been the center of the epidemic, and to states that have been funding critical drug and support programs to treat the disease.  This cut in funding to San Francisco means a loss in services for patients receiving primary medical care, a lack of access to counseling, support, outreach services, transitional and emergency housing and emergency payments for health care costs.

“Where do these people go? What do we tell them when their ability to receive support to fight HIV/AIDS is cut off?

“In prior reauthorizations of the Ryan White CARE Act, the changes that have been made were made at the margins in order to deal with emerging problems and developments; these changes did not, however, disrupt an initiative that was working.  Unlike those past reauthorizations, this bill would have a drastic destabilizing effect on many of the hardest-hit areas of the country, including California.

“A basic goal of this reauthorization must be to ensure that the actions we take do not destabilize systems already in place.  Unfortunately, the bill fails to meet this goal and jeopardizes the critical funding of areas throughout the country, in general, and the State and cities of California in particular. 

“In addition, the bill prematurely incorporates HIV reporting into the allocation formula, eliminates the hold harmless provision just when San Francisco and California need it the most, and allows the Administration to devise and implement a whole new funding formula without Congressional approval.  It is for these reasons, I must oppose this bill.”

“ Democrats are united in presenting a New Direction for America, one that will make our nation as strong as its people, one that brings opportunity, security, and prosperity to all Americans. ”

Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi