October 12, 2007
END OF THE LINE
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No ADAP waiting lists here— but it ain't perfect yet |
This week, the National Alliance of State and Territorial AIDS Directors (NASTAD) reported in its September ADAP Watch that there are no more AIDS Drugs Assistance Program waiting lists in the U.S. and its territories for the first time since 2002. Great news, for sure, and a credit to the hard work of advocates who have pushed for increased state and federal funding—but hardly cause for jubilation.
"This doesn't mean that ADAP problems have gone away," said Ryan Clary, associate director of health care advocacy at Project Inform. "We should definitely keep calling Congress and asking for full funding for ADAP and Ryan White."
Murray Penner, deputy executive director of domestic programs for NASTAD concurred.
"We have to sustain our momentum," Penner said. "People are falling through the cracks. It's probably more important than ever that we don't get complacent."
Numerous problems plague ADAP. Six states still have cost-containment measures, such as enrollment caps, including Alabama, Indiana, Michigan, Idaho, Kansas and Louisiana. In addition, 11 states continue to allow a maximum income of 200 percent of the federal poverty line to qualify for ADAP. In Puerto Rico, advocates and AIDS service organizations say patients remain in need of medication, even though the Puerto Rican government declared an end to its ADAP waiting list in March.
"Just because Puerto Rico has not reported a waiting list, It's possible people are not receiving medication," Penner said. "While Puerto Rico has a really unique set of challenges, it's not the only state where this is a possibility."
Beyond grassroots advocacy, NASTAD attributed the improvements in ADAP funding to HRSA's supplemental awards, which funded 14 states and two territories with a total of $9.4 million; a $75 million increase for Ryan White Part B base funds which ten states used to fund ADAP; the increase in set-aside for ADAP supplemental funding from three to five percent in the reauthorized Ryan White bill; and the impact of the Medicare Part D Prescription Drug Benefit that has provided savings for a number of ADAPs.