Important Happenings in HIV/Health Policy
Week Ending: June 15, 2018
By: Matthew Rose & Sable K. Nelson
Nation’s Leading HIV, STD and Hepatitis
Organizations Gravely Concerned by Trump
Administration’s Refusal to Defend ACA
Five of the nation’s leading HIV, STD, and viral hepatitis organizations expressed grave concern today at the Trump Administration’s decision not to defend critical components of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in legal challenges brought by the state of Texas. By failing to defend the law’s central pre-existing conditions protections, AIDS United, NASTAD, the National Coalition of STD Directors, NMAC, and The AIDS Institute fear that this Administration has abandoned millions of Americans with chronic or pre-existing conditions, including HIV, hepatitis, and other STDs, who rely on the ACA for access to critical, affordable health care coverage. For more information,
House Marking Up Federal Fiscal Year 2019 Appropriations Bill
On Friday, June 15, 2018, the Labor, Health and Human Services Subcommittee of the U.S. House Appropriation Committee will mark up the Federal Fiscal Year 2019 Appropriations bills. Markup is the process by which a Congress debates, amends, and rewrites proposed legislation. An appropriations bill is a piece of legislation that sets money aside for specific government spending. This is the third step in the Federal Budget Process:
What You Can Do
TAKE ACTION: It is very important that our elected officials hear from us to protect federal funding for HIV prevention and care. Speak truth to power by sharing your personal stories with your elected officials. It is vitally important to meet your federal elected officials when they are at home. If we don’t support and advocate for HIV funding and programs, who will? Our movement cannot afford to stand on the sidelines. Your U.S. Senators and U.S. Representatives need to hear from you.
- Find your U.S. Senators: https://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
- Find your U.S. Representative: https://www.house.gov/representatives/find-your-representative
Also, MAKE SURE THAT YOU ARE REGISTERED TO VOTE in time for the primary and general elections happening this year:
| Colorado | 6/18/2018 |
For more information, VISIT→ https://www.eac.gov/voters/register-and-vote-in-your-state/
Finally, PARTICIPATE IN THE PRIMARY ELECTION(S) in your state:
| District of Columbia
Utah New York Oklahoma Maryland Colorado |
6/19/2018
6/26/2018 6/26/2018 6/26/2018 6/26/2018 6/26/2018 |
For more information, VISIT→ http://www.ncsl.org/research/elections-and-campaigns/2018-state-primary-election-dates.aspx
What NMAC is Doing About It
- NMAC remains vigilant in its advocacy to protect FY19 government funding and the existence of the social safety net.
- NMAC releaseda Biomedical HIV Prevention “Blueprint” entitled Expanding Access to Biomedical HIV Prevention: Tailoring Approaches for Effectively Serving Communities of Color, a new report that establishes strategies to effectively use techniques such as Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) and Treatment as Prevention (TasP) to end the HIV epidemic in communities of color. The full report can be found by visiting nmac.org/blueprint.
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