For Immediate Release:

Monday, March 1, 2004

WASHINGTON, D.C.) – U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-Wash.) today announced that the King County HIV/AIDS Bureau will receive almost $6 million in Ryan White Care Act funding. This funding will provide critical health care services-including medication, treatment and support services-to HIV and AIDS patients lacking health insurance or financial resources.

The Ryan White CARE (Comprehensive AIDS Resources Emergency) Act, which Murray helped reauthorize in 2000, provides community-based medical treatment, medicine, and support services for men, women and children living with HIV or AIDS. The grant funding will be administered by the King County Health Services Department.

"We simply cannot turn our backs on the people who are living with this disease," Senator Murray said. "The battle against HIV/AIDS is not over. We must work to continue to provide the funds and services necessary to help improve and extend the lives of people living with HIV and AIDS."

Murray is also an advocate for increased funding to cover the costs of expensive AIDS drugs.

As of January 2004 the cumulative total of reported cases of AIDS in Washington state was 10,915. King County accounts for almost two-thirds of these reported cases.

For more information on HIV and AIDS in Washington state, visit the state's Department of Health website.