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HIV/AIDS Programs Receive Funding Increases House and Senate Pass FY 2002 Labor-HHS- Education Appropriations Bill
 
  Today, the U.S. Senate took final action on the FY 2002 Labor-HHS-Education appropriations conference report (HR 3061). The measure, which provides funding for important HIV/AIDS care, prevention and research programs, passed the Senate by a vote of 90 to 7 (Roll call vote no. 378). The House of Representatives passed the conference report last night by a vote of 393 to 30 (Roll call vote no. 504). The bill is expected to be signed into law by the President later this week.
 
In funding Ryan White CARE Act programs, conferees split the difference between the Senate and House-passed funding levels - with the exception of the ADAP program which received a $50 million increase. Programs included in the Minority AIDS Initiative received a $31 million increase over FY 2001 funding. HIV prevention programs received a $68.2 million increase and NIH funding specific to HIV/AIDS was estimated to increase by 11 percent. The Labor-HHS-Education funding measure was delayed in conference due to extensive negotiations over education funding formulas, which were resolved by the authorizing committee. A final agreement on the education reform bill was reached last week, setting the stage for final consideration of the Labor-HHS-Education bill.
 
The HIV/AIDS funding levels for the House-passed FY 2002 Labor-HHS-Education conference report include:
 
Program FY 2002 Funding Level (Change from FY 2001)
 
Total Ryan White Care Act $1.911 billion (+ $111.0 million)
Title I $619.5 million (+ $15.3 million)
Title II $338.4 million (+ $16.4 million)
ADAP $639.0 million (+ $50.0 million)
Title III $193.9 million (+ $8.0 million)
Title IV $70.9 million (+ $5.9 million)
Part F Dental $13.5 million (+ $3.5 million)
Part F- AETC $35.3 million (+ $3.7 million)
 
Centers for Disease Control
And Prevention (HIV/AIDS Programs) $835.2 million (+ $68.2 million)
HIV Domestic Prevention $691.53 million (+ $39.0 million)
HIV Global Prevent $143.763 million (+ $39.0 million)
 
Minority AIDS Initiative* $381.0 million (+ $31.0 million )
The amount shown for the Minority AIDS Initiative is a cumulative total of appropriations earmarked for communities of color through existing DHHS programs. Please note the $381 million is not in addition to funds being made available through each of the specific HIV/AIDS programs.
 
Ryan White CARE Act $123.2 million
CDC Domestic Prevention $96.0 million
SAMHSA and Other Programs $95.1 million
Office of the Director $7.0 million
Other DHHS programs $59.7 million
 
National Institutes of Health $23.285 billion (+ 2.985 billion) * No specific numbers provided for HIV/AIDS research * The final agreement notes that $100 million will be transferred from the NIH budget to the Global AIDS fund.
 
Substance Abuse and Mental $3.131 billion (+ 131.0 million)
Health Services Administration
Center for Substance Abuse Treatment $291.572 million
Center for Substance Abuse Prevention $198.14 million
* No specific numbers provided for HIV/AIDS research
 
Audits of Prevention Programs:
The final conference report includes language requesting an audit by the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) Inspector General of all federal amounts and activities allocated for AIDS prevention programs funded by the Labor-HHS-Education bill.
 
With five ongoing audits of HIV/AIDS programs within DHHS, AIDS Action views the repetitive and costly audits as an attempt to hamstring open, honest and comprehensive sexual health dialogue. These costly audits are essentially diverting funding from direct services and weakening efforts to fight the HIV/AIDS epidemic.
 
Article thanks to Aids Action: www.aidsaction.org
 
 
 
 
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