The House of Representatives today adopted an Omnibus Appropriations bill which included an amendment offered by Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) to add $100 million beyond the President's request for the Ryan White care program.
Under the agreement, funding for the Ryan White program will be $996 million for fiscal year 1997, an increase of $238 million or 31% over comparable 1996 spending. The President had requested $896 million for the Ryan White program to provide assistance to cities and states for AIDS care.
The additional $100 million provided by Congress will be divided between the AIDS Drug Assistance Program (ADAP) and the primary care programs funded by the Ryan White program. The additional funds will be used to pay for viral load testing, AIDS drugs, and primary care. The Public Health Service reports a 28% increase in demand for primary care resulting for the availability of new combination drug therapy.
Since November, FDA has approved five new AIDS drugs. Medical researchers have recently reported on studies finding that for many patients viral loads can be reduced to undetectable levels following carefully monitored combination drug therapy.
"This much-needed funding comes at a critical time. As drugs becomes available to drastically improve the quality of life for people with HIV, we have a responsibility to see that these treatments reach all those who might benefit from them," Rep. Pelosi said.
