The Weekly Update

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March 21, 2008

Vol. VII, Number 9

This Week in Washington

1. House and Senate Pass FY 2009 Budget Resolutions

2. House and Senate Break for Easter Recess

 

Announcements

1. March 20th Marks Second Annual National Native HIV/AIDS Awareness Day

2. Upcoming Connecting to Care Training: April 29-May 1, Washington, DC

3. CDC Names Acting Associate Director for Heightened National Response

4. Registration Open for AIDSWatch 2008

5. Global Conference on Methamphetamine Accepting Abstracts

6. HRSA Provides 2008 Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program Meeting Information

7. Upcoming Summit on HIV Vaccine Research and Development

                                                                                                                       

This Week in Washington

1. House and Senate Pass FY 2009 Budget Resolutions

The House of Representatives passed the Fiscal Year (FY) 2009 Budget Resolution, H.Con.Res. 312, on Thursday, March 13th by a slim margin of 212-207. The Senate passed their version of the Budget Resolution, S.Con.Res. 70 on Friday, March 14th by a vote of 51-44.

 

The Senate passed budget resolution provides a $5.27 billion increase over fiscal year (FY) 2008 for the healthcare portion of the FY 2009 budget, which is called “Function 550.” Function 550 covers most health spending except Medicare including spending on health services, research and training, and consumer and occupational safety.  The House passed budget resolution increases healthcare funding by $4.44 billion over FY 2008.  The Senate increase of approximately 10% is especially encouraging since it came very close to meeting the target recommendation of $5.3 billion by The Coalition for Health Funding. AIDS Action belongs to the Coalition which is an umbrella organization for health organizations’ budget advocacy.  The increases in both houses are especially important because they mean that HIV/AIDS advocacy organizations will have a stronger ability to ask for increased funding for important HIV/AIDS programs such as prevention programs within the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Ryan White CARE Act, and research in the National Institutes of Health.

 

Before voting on the passed resolution, the House voted on three alternate budgets, offered in the form of amendments. Representative Carolyn Kilpatrick (D-MI) offered the Congressional Black Caucus (CBD), Budget, H.AMDT 970, which focused funding and services in the areas of health care, education, veteran’s benefits, and services for low income families.  The CBC budget was defeated by 126-192. Representative Barbara Lee (D-CA) offered the Congressional Progressive Caucus Budget, H.AMDT 971, which was defeated by a vote of 98-322. Representative Paul Ryan (R-WI) offered the Republican substitute budget, H.AMDT 972, which failed 157-263.

 

The Senate passed Budget Resolution included a modified Early Treatment for HIV Act (ETHA) demonstration project amendment offered by Senators Hillary Clinton (D-NY) and Gordon Smith (R-OR).  The amendment would create a deficit neutral reserve fund to expand access to vital medical services for low-income HIV-positive individuals.  The reserve fund could then allow the creation of an ETHA demonstration project.  The original Clinton/Smith amendment had called for the creation of a reserve fund capped at $500 million.  The language was modified and no total was set.  A reserve fund allows the budget chair the ability to change the budget allocation totals based on a triggering event.  Allowing a reserve fund for ETHA would mean that if language authorizing an ETHA demonstration project is passed, the budget chair would be able to provide funds for it as long as the budget chair could find an offset of other funds from somewhere within the budget.  For final passage, the reserve fund needs to be included in the final conference report and approved by the House.   

 

It is important to note that there would still need to be an authorization of an ETHA demonstration project by Congress.  However the creation of the reserve fund is essentially a marker of Congressional priorities, signifying that there is substantial support for authorization of the ETHA project.  As such, this is a positive development for ETHA.  Authorization of ETHA would provide states the option to extend Medicaid coverage to low-income, HIV-positive individuals without requiring a diagnosis of AIDS.

 

To view the full House Budget Resolution, please visit: http://www.thomas.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d110:h.con.res.00312:.

 

To View the full Senate Budget Resolution, please visit: http://www.thomas.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d110:s.con.res.00070:. 

 

2. House and Senate Break for Easter Recess

Both the House and the Senate began their Easter Recess break on Monday, March 17th. During this time, the House will conduct a District Work Period and the Senate a State Work period until Friday March 28th. Congress will reconvene on Monday, March 31st. Please use this time to contact your Representatives’ state and district offices to speak to them about the importance of increase domestic HIV/AIDS funding in the FY 2009 appropriations.

 

Announcements

1. March 20th Marks Second Annual National Native HIV/AIDS Awareness Day

Thursday, March 20th 2008 marked the second annual National Native HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. The National Native American AIDS Prevention Center (NNAAPC), Colorado State University’s Center for Applied Studies in American Ethnicity, and the Inter Tribal Council of Arizona organize and implement the observance day, intended to raise awareness of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Native American communities. HIV is affecting thousands of American Indians and Alaska Natives, who have the third highest rate of AIDS diagnosis in the United States, despite having the smallest populations. American Indians and Alaska Natives have the shortest time between and AIDS diagnosis and death.

 

To learn more about National Native HIV/AIDS Awareness Day please visit: http://www.nnaapc.org/news/awareness-day.htm or http://www.hhs.gov/aidsawarenessdays/days/native/index.html.

 

2. Upcoming Connecting to Care Training: April 29-May 1, Washington, DC
AIDS Action Foundation has an upcoming Connecting to Care “Train the Trainer” session scheduled for April 29-May 1, 2008 in Washington, DC. The goal of the training is to introduce the Connecting to Care curriculum to professionals who are in a position to carry out trainings and workshops and continue sharing the model with service providers and others working with HIV-infected clients.  This is an opportunity to learn the Connecting to Care curriculum on addressing unmet need, receive the materials used in the trainings, and prepare to deliver workshops/trainings to Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program grantees, HIV administrators, community planning bodies, and other HIV care and service providers.  The training is supported by a cooperative agreement with HRSA/HAB. Limited scholarships are available to participants traveling to the session from outside of the Washington, DC Metro area.

 

The Connecting to Care training “Strategies for Connecting People to Care: Addressing Unmet Need in HIV” is a hands-on learning module that aims to help training participants strengthen existing community-based programs and design new ones that connect HIV positive people to medical care.  The training is based on research conducted in communities across the country and uses workbooks that capture best practices and give participants useful examples.  The flexible two-day curriculum reviews the research and provides practical applications of best practices from successful programs.  Training sessions can also be tailored to assist providers serving two specific communities: currently and formerly incarcerated individuals and those living in rural communities.

 

For registration information contact Dea Varsovczky at dvarsovczky@aidsaction.org

3. CDC Names Acting Associate Director for Heightened National Response
On Tuesday, March 18th, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) appointed Dr. Madeline Sutton as the Acting Associate Director for the Heightened National Response to the HIV/AIDS Crisis among African Americans (HNR) in the Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention (DHAP). Her predecessor, Dr. George Roberts, accepted a new position as the Director of the Division of Partnerships and Strategic Alliances in the National Center for Health Marketing at CDC.  In her new role as Acting Associate Director, Dr. Sutton will help to set the agenda for the next important steps for HNR.

4. Registration Open for AIDSWatch 2008

Registration is now open for AIDSWatch 2008, taking place in Washington DC from April 28-30, 2008. AIDSWatch is a grassroots advocacy program, organized by the National Association of People With AIDS (NAPWA), which brings HIV positive people and their supporters to Washington DC to meet their elected Members of Congress. AIDSWatch participants are given the opportunity to educate their legislators on the need for an improved governmental response to the domestic HIV epidemic. This year’s AIDSWatch will focus on the need for improved treatment accessibility, science and evidence based prevention, and increased appropriations for HIV/AIDS programs.

NAPWA says, "We invite all persons infected and affected by HIV in America to join us in 2008 to allow your voice to be heard in our nation's capital. Please revisit the website frequently for updates about the 2008 program and registration."

To learn more and to register, please visit: http://napwa.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=19.

 

5. Global Conference on Methamphetamine Accepting Abstracts

The 2008 Global Conference on Methamphetamine: Science, Strategy, and Response will take place on September 15-16 in Prague, Czech Republic. This will be the first ever global conference on methamphetamine. Abstract submissions are now being accepted for the following topic areas: pharmacology, research, trafficking, treatment, policy, mental health, global markets, HIV, Hepatitis, community education, law enforcement, women, epidemiology, harm reduction, public health, MSM sexual risk, injection drug use, and others.

 

Individual proposals for presentations are welcome and presentation formats may include individual papers, reports on research in progress, round table discussions, and workshops. If you are interested in presenting, please send a 250 word proposal along with a short bio to: abstracts@globalmethconference.com. If you have any questions, please contact Luciano Colonna at Luciano.colonna@globalmeth.com. The deadline for abstracts is April 2, 2008.

 

6. HRSA Provides 2008 Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program Meeting Information

On March 6, 2008, the Health Resources Services Administration HRSA announced that the 2008 Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program Meeting website was now live.  The website will allow participants to register, submit workshop and poster abstracts, and reserve hotel rooms.

 

HRSA states that the meeting will be held August 25-28, 2008 in Washington, DC and is being co-sponsored by HRSA/HAB and the American Academy of HIV Medicine (AAHIVM).  Once again, two meetings will occur simultaneously: 1) the Grantee Meeting; and 2) the 11th Annual Clinical Update.  The Clinical Update is sponsored by the International AIDS Society-USA (IAS-USA).  The meeting theme, "New Era, New Act," reflects a focus on implementing the 2006 Ryan White legislation as well as ongoing efforts to seek ever better ways to deliver HIV care to the underserved.  We make a difference for over half a million people each year and owe much of our success to our creativity and adaptability to change.

 

The conference website provides all the information you need to get ready for the meeting, such as: key deadline dates; instructions for registering and submitting abstracts for workshops and poster sessions; and reserving hotel rooms.

 

Access the site at:
http://www.ryanwhite2008.com/

 

7. Upcoming Summit on HIV Vaccine Research and Development

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) will convene and host a summit on HIV vaccine research and development on March 25, 2008, 8:30 AM –

4:45 PM, at the Marriott Bethesda North Hotel and Conference Center in Bethesda, MD.  The summit will bring together NIAID staff and experts in the scientific community to examine the current direction of HIV vaccine research.  Topics to be explored include the optimal balance between basic vaccine-related research and development efforts designed to advance promising vaccine candidates into clinical trials, how to use optimally animal model research to support vaccine research and clinical research and trials.  NIAID hopes that specific recommendations will result from the summit.

 

The summit can be viewed via Webcast at http://hivsummit.dgimeetingsupport.com.

 

The AIDS Action Weekly Update

The Weekly Update is written with the interests of our members in mind. If you are interested in membership with AIDS Action, we invite you to contact aford@aidsaction.org.