SFAF Fights to Protect AIDS Drug Program

The very idea seem incredible --that California, which has led the nation in its response to the AIDS epidemic, would put life-sustaining HIV drugs out of reach of people who cannot afford them. But that is exactly what could happen if Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's proposed budget for the 2004-05 fiscal year is approved. SFAF is actively fighting to see to it that the AIDS Drug Assistance Program (ADAP) receives an increase in the funding needed to guarantee access to HIV medications for low-income Californians. We need YOUR help to succeed in this important goal!

"I would not be alive today if it were not for the life-saving treatments that I have access to because of ADAP." Those were the compelling words of ADAP client and former SFAF Board Chair Paul Wisotzky when he spoke at a rally of several hundred AIDS advocates on the steps of the State office building in San Francisco on January 13, 2004. These activists--made up of people living with HIV/AIDS, their caregivers and families from throughout the Bay Area--were protesting the Governor's proposal to cap enrollment of the AIDS Drug Assistance Program.

Fortunately, that proposal has not been approved by the Legislature. But if it is approved, a total of only 23,900 people will be permitted in the program at any time (the number of individuals currently enrolled in the program). People who leave ADAP could be replaced with new enrollees, but the net result would be that over 1,400 people every year would be forced to wait for entry into ADAP and wait for much needed HIV medications--and that list would continue to grow.

Speaking to activists holding signs demanding that the Governor protect the ADAP program, Wisotzky said, "The Governor's proposal suggests that some people should have access to treatment and some should not; that some people should live and some should die. It suggests that whether one lives or dies from AIDS should be based solely on where someone happens to be standing in line. This will lead to needless, preventable illness and death."

To date, legislators in the Capitol have been sympathetic to these pleas and key leaders, including Assembly Members Mark Leno (D-San Francisco) and John Laird (D-Santa Cruz), have vowed to fight for the program. But whether the Legislature will be able to identify the additional $25 million needed to assure that ADAP remains available for all who need it is unclear. The Governor and lawmakers are faced with the task of addressing a $14 billion budget deficit, and the Governor has said that he wants ALL Californians to share in the pain of fixing that problem.

"The Governor's proposed budget threatens to return us to an earlier time in the epidemic when large numbers of people went without treatment and illness and death were commonplace," says Dana Van Gorder, the Foundation's Director of State Policy. "We must not allow that to happen. If we do not succeed in securing $25 million in new funds for ADAP, California will have a waiting list for ADAP for the first time. We will also be faced with terrible decisions about how to restrict benefits for people already enrolled in the program. That could include removing drugs from the list of medications now available to ADAP clients."

William Bland, SFAF's Director of Community Programs has also expressed concern about the potential damage that would be done not just to HIV treatment if ADAP is not fully funded, but also to HIV prevention efforts. "Recent studies show that when HIV-positive people are being successfully treated, they are less likely to transmit HIV to others since viral load is greatly reduced. ADAP therefore plays a critical role in prevention. I am also concerned that limiting access to HIV treatment runs counter to the federal government's goal of encouraging people who have not yet tested for HIV to learn their HIV status. Why will people want to learn their HIV status if they feel there is little or nothing they can do about it?"

To be sure, California's ADAP crisis is in part due to a failure of the President and Congress to allocate sufficient funds to the program at a national level. Despite the fact that a $218 million increase was needed to help all 50 states keep pace with growing need for ADAP services, Congress has approved an increase of only $35 million for the current budget year. That failure has forced 15 states to create waiting lists for the program or to severely restrict the range of drugs to which people with HIV and AIDS have access.

Nothing short of a major community mobilization is likely to assure that California's ADAP program receives the funding increase it needs. Governor Schwarzenegger has already reversed himself on significant cuts to other state programs in the face of large and well- organized protests on other critical health issues. To that end, SFAF is working with other HIV/AIDS groups statewide to actively engage ADAP clients and community members to insist that the Governor and Legislature take the right action on this issue.

The rally on January 13--sponsored by SFAF, Project Inform and dozens of other AIDS organizations--was followed closely by the media and delivered a strong message to the Governor that many people are watching his actions on AIDS funding. But this is just the beginning of a long fight on this issue--legislators and the Governor will be negotiating on the budget until at least June 30.

"This initial rally in San Francisco is only a start," says Van Gorder. "On March 8th, we hope to take hundreds of people to Sacramento to voice our opposition to the proposed ADAP cuts. People who cannot go to the Capitol will be put to work letter writing and phone calling to support these efforts. There is something for everyone to do on this life and death issue."

The March 8, 2004 rally will occur at the State Capital, South Steps in Sacramento. Please join us there.