10 State ADAPs Have Waiting Lists; 11 States Anticipate New, Additional Access Restrictions, NASTAD Says
Nineteen state AIDS Drug Assistance Programs have implemented either waiting lists or other cost-containment measures, according to the latest "ADAP Watch" released on Wednesday by the National Alliance of State and Territorial AIDS Directors (ADAP Watch, 6/8). ADAPs are federal- and state-funded programs that provide HIV/AIDS-related medications to low-income, uninsured and underinsured HIV-positive individuals. In June 2004, President Bush announced $20 million in one-time funding outside of ADAP. The funding helped provide medications directly to HIV-positive people living in the 10 states that had waiting lists at that time (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 4/12). As of May 12, 1,891 HIV-positive individuals were on ADAP waiting lists in 10 states, but 1,438 of those patients are covered under the additional funding. However, the funding is scheduled to expire in September 2005. The 10 states that currently have waiting lists include: Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Idaho, Iowa, Kentucky, Montana, Nebraska, North Carolina and West Virginia. Eleven states -- Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas and Utah -- have implemented other cost-containment strategies. In addition, 11 states anticipate having to implement new or supplementary restrictions in the future, according to the report (ADAP Watch, 6/8). "States are bracing for nearly 1,500 clients transitioning back into their ADAPs without the funds to support their treatment needs," NASTAD Executive Director Julie Scofield said, adding, "The initiative has been instrumental in reducing waiting lists over the last year, but we now must face the reality that the program may not continue beyond September. Without additional funding, waiting lists will quickly grow and people may be forced off their medication regimens, which could result in harmful viral resistance to the treatments" (NASTAD release, 6/8).
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