HIV Medication Assistance

HELLO, I'M JENNIFER CRAWFORD. THANK YOU FOR JOINING US. IT IS ESTIMATED THAT OVER 130,000 PEOPLE IN FLORIDA LIVE WITH HIV, ACCORDING TO A 2 UNITED, NEARLY ONE-THIRD OF THOSE FIGHTING THE VIRUS RELY ON THE STATE AIDS DRUG ASSISTANCE PROGRAM EARLIER THIS YEAR. THE FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH SLASHED ELIGIBILITY FOR THE PROGRAM WHICH WOULD HAVE ELIMINATED HALF OF THE ENROLLEES OF A DOUBT. TEMPORARY FUNDING HAS BEEN APPROVED TO KEEP THE PROGRAM GOING, BUT IT'S ONLY GUARANTEE TO THE END OF THE MONTH. WGCUS KATE CRONIN LEARNED ABOUT THE IMPACT THIS WILL HAVE ON THOSE LIVING WITH HIV WHO RELY ON THE ASSISTANCE. >> I'M JOINED BY ESTEBAN WOOD, THE DIRECTOR OF ADVOCACY, LEGISLATIVE AFFAIRS AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT FOR THE AIDS HEALTHCARE FOUNDATION. THANK YOU FOR JOINING ME, MISTER. WHAT? >> THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME. >> NOW HERE IN FLORIDA, WE SAW ACCESS TO HIV MEDICATION CUT IN MARCH. IT WAS LATER RESTORED IN THE MONTH THROUGH EMERGENCY LEGISLATION FROM GOVERNOR RON DESANTIS WHO WANTED TO SEE THIS CUT IN RESTORATION AFFECTING YOUR PATIENTS. >> YEAH. WELL, FIRST OFF IN JANUARY, THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH ANNOUNCED REALLY SIGNIFICANT CHANGES TO THE AIDS DRUG ASSISTANCE PROGRAM, ESSENTIALLY CUTTING 12,000 OF OUR NEIGHBORS OF OUR FRIENDS, OUR FAMILY MEMBERS OFF OF MEDICATION THAT REALLY KEEPS THEM ALIVE. THEY RESTRICTED AND REMOVED 2 POPULAR HIV DRUGS OFF OF THE LIST OF AVAILABLE MEDICATIONS AND THEY CUT ELIGIBILITY. SO WHAT THAT MEANS IS, YOU KNOW, IF I'M SOMEONE WHO CANNOT AFFORD THE EXTREME COST OF HIV MEDICATION, IT CAN BE UPWARDS OF $4,500 A MONTH. FOR MEDICATION THAT KEEPS ME ALIVE. THE STATE ESSENTIALLY REDUCED THE MAXIMUM ANNUAL INCOME. YOU COULD HAVE TO BE ELIGIBLE FOR THIS HELP. THEY REDUCED IT FROM ABOUT $63,000 A YEAR TO JUST ABOVE $20,000 A YEAR. THAT MEANS, BUT IF I'M MAKING $35,000 A YEAR AND WORKING 9 TO 5, I'M CARRYING MULTIPLE JOBS. I CAN NOT BE ELIGIBLE FOR THAT HELP THAT KEEPS ME ALIVE. >> SO IT'S LIKE A REALLY SERIOUS ISSUE. AND YOU HAVE REPORTED THAT AHF IS THE LARGEST PROVIDER OF HIV MEDICAL CARE IN THE WORLD. CAN YOU EXPLAIN MORE WHY ACCESS TO THIS TREATMENT IS SO IMPORTANT? >> YEAH, I MEAN, SO NOT ONLY DO HIV MEDICATIONS, KEEP, YOU KNOW, SOMEONE WHO'S LIVING WITH HIV, STABLE VIRALLY, SUPPRESSED ALIVE AND HEALTHY. BUT ALSO IT ALLOWS FOR THE COMMUNITY TO BE, YOU KNOW, STABLE, HEALTHY AND PROTECTED. RIGHT? WHAT WE REALLY WANT AS PUBLIC HEALTH ADVOCATES IS TO GET TO A POINT WHERE COMMUNITIES VIRAL SUPPRESSION RATE REMAIN AS HIGH AS THEY CAN BE. WHAT THAT MEANS IS THERE'S NO THREAT OR DANGER FOR HIV TO BE PASSED FROM ONE PERSON TO THE NEXT. AND SO WE NEED WE REALLY WANT TO HAVE PEOPLE REMAIN IN TREATMENT. STAY ON TREATMENT. I GET ON TREATMENT AND DOING THIS CUTTING ELIGIBILITY KICKING 12,000 PEOPLE OFF OF THEIR MEDS IS THE OPPOSITE OF WHAT WE SHOULD BE DOING. WE SHOULD BE PUTTING MORE PEOPLE ON HIV DRUGS WHO NEED THEM RIGHT. AND THAT'S THE OPPOSITE OF WHAT FLORIDA DECIDED TO DO. WE'RE GRATEFUL THAT THE LEGISLATURE DECIDED TO DO THE RIGHT THING. UNDERSTAND THE SCIENCE, UNDERSTAND THE FINANCIAL SITUATION. THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN DISASTROUS ON THAT ECONOMIC FRONT ON THE PUBLIC HEALTH FRONT IN ON THE MORAL FRONT. AT THE END OF THE DAY, THIS IS JUST THE RIGHT THING TO DO. >> WHAT KIND OF DEMOGRAPHICS HAVE YOU SEEN BEING IMPACTED BY THESE CHANGES IN INCOME ELIGIBILITY FOR THE FLORIDA AIDS DRUG ASSISTANCE PROGRAM? >> THIS ISSUE EFFECTS EVERY SINGLE CORNER OF THE STATE FROM PENSACOLA. SO JACKSONVILLE DOWN TO THE FLORIDA KEYS TO FORT MYERS. I MEAN, THESE ARE PEOPLE WHO ARE BLACK AND BROWN COMMUNITIES PREDOMINANTLY WHO HAVE WHO ARE UNFORTUNATELY ARE IN THE MOST AT RISK OF GETTING HIV. BUT ALSO WE HAVE TO REMEMBER. RURAL COMMUNITIES, THOSE WHO DON'T HAVE EASY ACCESS TO A PUBLIC HEALTH INFRASTRUCTURE IN CLINICS, HOSPITALS, FOR EXAMPLE, YOU KNOW, OUT THERE IN CENTRAL FLORIDA AT THEIR NEW RURAL FLORIDA, REALLY DIFFICULT TO GET ACCESS NOT ONLY TO PUBLIC HEALTH CARE, BUT ALSO ACCESS TO THESE TRUCKS. AND SO WHAT? WE'RE TRYING TO STRESS IS IF WE INVEST MORE INTO THIS PROGRAM THAT OFFERS LIFE-SAVING HELP LIFE-SAVING HEALTH CARE WERE NOT ONLY TAKING CARE OF, YOU KNOW, A DIVERSE SET OF POPULATION, BUT WE'RE ALSO TAKING CARE OF OUR NEIGHBORS AND WE'RE TAKING CARE OF OUR FRIENDS AND OUR MOMS AND DADS WHO UNFORTUNATELY HIV IN 4, SHE STILL HAS A STIGMA ATTACHED TO IT. THE PEOPLE DON'T WANT TO BE SO PUBLIC ABOUT THE FACT THAT YOU KNOW, THAT THEY WERE DIAGNOSED WITH HIV. SO, YOU KNOW, IT REALLY IS SOMETHING THAT EFFECTS THOUSANDS, 10'S OF THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE AND FLORIDA AND WE'RE GRATEFUL THAT THE FLORIDA LEGISLATURE STEPPED IN AND DID THE RIGHT THING. >> AND IN SPEAKING TO THAT STIGMA, YOU TALKED ABOUT THE LATEST CDC REPORTS FROM 2024. STATED THAT OVER 60% OF NEW HIV INFECTIONS WERE IN OR BISEXUAL MEN. DOES THIS AFFECT THE STANDARD OF CARE FOR HIV POSITIVE PATIENTS AT ALL? ABSOLUTELY. >> ABSOLUTELY. IT DOES. AND IN THE AIDS HEALTHCARE FOUNDATION OFFERS HEALTH CARE, YOU KNOW, AT FREE OR REDUCED COST, YOU KNOW WHERE WE WE ACCEPT PEOPLE. AND IF YOU CAN AFFORD, YOU KNOW, HEALTH CARE OR NOT INSURED FOLKS, UNINSURED FOLKS, WE ARE A NONPROFIT HEALTH CARE OPERATOR, BUT IMPORTANTLY, WE DO NOT EXCLUSIVELY SERVE THE LGBTQ COMMUNITY. WE SERVE EVERYONE NO MATTER YOUR RACE, NO MATTER YOUR ETHNICITY, NO MATTER YOUR ORIENTATION. AND SO DOES IT IMPACT ARE, YOU KNOW, ABILITY TO OFF OR THAT LEVEL OF CARE. ABSOLUTELY. IT DOES. AND AND WE'RE CONCERNED THAT ALL OF THIS TRITE, ALL OF THE IMPROVEMENTS THAT THE FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH ACTUALLY CONTRIBUTED TO, YOU KNOW, IN THE LAST 10 YEARS WE MADE A LOT OF PROGRESS ON ERADICATING HIV AND AIDS IN THE STATE OF FLORIDA TO MEET A LOT OF PROGRESS AND WE WERE CONCERNED WHEN THESE CHANGES WERE ANNOUNCED IN EARLY JANUARY THAT WE WOULD ESSENTIALLY SET OURSELVES BACK DECADES OF PROGRESS. AND, YOU KNOW, TO SOME EXTENT WE'RE STILL CONCERNED ABOUT THAT POSSIBILITY IN ABOUT THAT THREAT. WE'RE A LITTLE BIT MORE COMFORTABLE NOW ABOUT WHERE WE ARE GIVEN THE PROGRESS MADE THIS PAST LEGISLATIVE SESSION. BUT BUT ABSOLUTELY WE SHOULD BE HAVING MORE CONVERSATIONS WITH COMMUNITY OPERATORS, MORE CONVERSATIONS WITH LEGISLATORS THAT THEY UNDERSTAND THE IMPORTANCE OF THIS ISSUE AND MORE CONVERSATIONS WITH COMMUNITY. WE NEED, YOU KNOW, WE NEED TO WORK HAND IN HAND WITH COMMUNITY MEMBERS WHO ARE ON THE FRONT LINES OF THIS CRISIS. HIV IS A CRISIS. AND AT THE END OF THE DAY, IF FOR THOSE THAT THOSE FOLKS WHO REMEMBER, YOU KNOW, THE THE THE ABSOLUTE TRAGEDY, IT WAS TO BE SOMEONE LIVING WITH HIV IN THE 70'S AND 80'S AND 90'S. WE DON'T WANT TO GET BACK TO THAT PLACE. WE WANT TO WE NEED TO DO EVERYTHING THAT WE CAN AS A COMMUNITY AS A SOCIETY TO MAKE SURE THAT THAT HISTORY CAN NEVER BE REPEATED. >> MISTER ESTEBAN WOULD THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING US TODAY AND SHARING THIS IMPORTANT TOPIC.