WASHINGTON - Congressman Charles Rangel was honored Monday by the National Association of People with AIDS (NAPWA) for his contributions to people living with HIV and AIDS.

The Congressman was presented with the 2010 Positive Leadership Award during an evening ceremony in the Rayburn House Office Building. Previous honorees include House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Rep. Henry Waxman, Rep. George Miller and Senators Max Baucus and Tom Harkin.

“I am humbled to receive such an award from such principal advocates like the NAPWA,” said Congressman Rangel. “AIDS has been a silent killer in our communities for the past 30 years, affecting our brothers and sisters, neighbors and friends, in my community and around the world. Whatever we can do to provide individuals and families with the services they need to fight the disease while investing money in finding a cure is always the right course of action, practically and morally.

Recently passed health reform legislation and championed by Rangel contained a number of provisions which will directly benefit people living with HIV/AIDS. Immediate help will be offered through the expansion of community health centers, the development of temporary high-risk pools to assist individuals without insurance who have pre-existing conditions. Immediate benefits also include an allowance to count AIDS Drug Assistance Program costs (ADAP) towards the annual out of pocket threshold for Medicare Part D beneficiaries – helping them get catastrophic coverage sooner.

Other reforms, such as increased subsidies to purchase insurance and expansion of Medicaid, become effective in 2014.

“We made great strides this year in providing significant investments in both the near-term and long-term to improve access to care and treatment for people living with HIV and AIDS,” said Rangel. “Because of the hard work of so many advocates in and out of the halls of Congress, we can finally say that all Americans will soon have access to quality affordable health care – making treatment a reality for thousands of additional Americans who struggle to access the care they need.