Press Releases
Brendan Daly/Nadeam Elshami
202-226-7616
08/02/2007
Pelosi Statement on the Reintroduction of the Early Treatment for HIV Act
Washington, D.C. – Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, along with Reps. Eliot Engel (D-NY) and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), today reintroduced the Early Treatment for HIV Act (ETHA) with a bipartisan group of 54 original co-sponsors. Speaker Pelosi released the following statement:
“Effective drug treatments have improved both the health and quality of life for thousands of people living with HIV/AIDS. However, many uninsured, low-income HIV-positive individuals still do not have access to these life-saving medications because they individuals generally do not meet Medicaid requirements until they are disabled by full-blown AIDS. As a result, there is a pressing need to eliminate barriers to early drug therapy.
“A substantial hole remains in our safety net for people with HIV. Forcing people to wait for health care until their immune system is compromised by AIDS is bad health policy. This law must be changed.
“ETHA gives states the option of allowing low-income individuals living with HIV to qualify for Medicaid coverage earlier in the course of their disease. This approach is modeled on the successful Breast and Cervical Cancer Treatment and Prevention Act of 2000, which allows states to provide early access to Medicaid for women with breast and cervical cancer.
“Early treatment for HIV infection saves lives and reduces health care costs as progression from HIV to full-blown AIDS is prevented or delayed. It also strengthens our economy as individuals who receive appropriate treatment are able to return to work or continue working as their disability is delayed.
“Passage of the Early Treatment for HIV Act to expand Medicaid coverage will allow people living with HIV to stay healthy and active, and we urge our Congressional colleagues and President Bush to join us in this effort.”