Important Happenings in HIV/Health Policy

Week Ending: August 17, 2018
By: Matthew Rose & Sable K. Nelson

NOTE: The Senate returned from its scheduled recess on Wednesday, August 15.The House remains in recess until September 4.

ViiV Healthcare reports positive 48-week results for first pivotal, phase III study for novel, long-acting, injectable HIV-treatment regimen

The Antiretroviral Therapy as Long-Acting Suppression (ATLAS) study meets primary endpoint, showing similar efficacy of a once-a-month, investigational, injectable two-drug regimen of cabotegravir and rilpivirine compared to a standard of care, daily, oral three-drug regimen. The study showed long-acting cabotegravir and rilpivirine, injected once a month, had similar efficacy to a standard of care, daily, oral three-drug regimen at Week 48. Full results from the study will be presented at an upcoming scientific meeting. For more information, READ: www.natap.org

Podcast: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’ See You In Court!


In this episode of Kaiser Health Network’s (KHN) “What the Health?” Julie Rovner of Kaiser Health News, Alice Ollstein of Talking Points Memo, Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times and Kimberly Leonard of the Washington Examiner talk about a spate of lawsuits involving the Affordable Care Act, as well as the latest in state and federal efforts regarding the Medicaid program for the poor. For more information, LISTEN  https://khn.org/news/podcast-khns-what-the-health-see-you-in-court/?utm_campaign=KHN%20-%20Weekly%20Edition&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=65278495&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_OxJYvxVjxXbZgn1vzU1V-nZIak7GEc1wgtvYj0o2IWhDQ2-CoSu_mpxxLL7ljKH3O5Y4JPrsy-nEJ7W-XpwSQW2ORcA&_hsmi=65278495

Azar Meets With Specialty and Patient Groups about Drug Pricing

On Wednesday, U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Secretary Alex Azar met with representatives of specialty-physician and patient groups to discuss the Trump Administration’s efforts to offer new tools for Medicare Advantage plans to negotiate lower drug prices for patients. The groups included the American Academy of Ophthalmology, the American Cancer Society’s Cancer Action Network, the American College of Rheumatology, the American Society of Clinical Oncologists, and Patients for Affordable Drugs. Both Secretary Azar and the organizational representatives expressed appreciation for the opportunity to share their views with each other on the announcement that Medicare Advantage plans will be able to use step therapy or prior authorization to negotiate lower drug prices for patients.
https://www.einnews.com/pr_news/458876035/hhs-secretary-azar-meets-with-specialty-and-patient-groups-regarding-drug-pricing

What You Can Do

TAKE ACTION: It is very important that our elected officials hear from us to protect federal HIV 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:

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:

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 released a 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 x`of color. The full report can be found by visiting www.nmac.org/blueprint