ENZI CALLS ON CONGRESS TO PASS RYAN WHITE CARE ACT; BILL MUST BETTER MEET HIV/AIDS NEEDS OF WOMEN, MINOIRITIES, RURAL CITIZENS
Marking the 25th anniversary of the Center for Disease Control's (CDC) first report of AIDS in the United States, U.S. Senator Mike Enzi (RWyo.), Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, today called on Congress to reauthorize the Ryan White CARE Act, which provides life-saving treatment to people living with HIV/AIDS who have no means of paying for care themselves.
"This is no anniversary to celebrate," Enzi said. "But it is an anniversary that Congress should mark by reauthorizing and modernizing the Ryan White CARE Act to fight the epidemic of the coming 25 years - not the epidemic of the past 25 years. I am confident that Congress will do just that by passing an updated and strengthened Ryan White reauthorization this month."
Last month, the Senate HELP Committee overwhelmingly approved the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Modernization Act, S. 2823. The bill now awaits the consideration of the full Senate.
"Federal resources for HIV/AIDS, including those provided by the Ryan White CARE Act, should go where the epidemic is today and will be tomorrow, not where it was a decade ago," Enzi added. "This disease affects more women, minorities, and
people from rural areas than ever before, yet funding provisions limit the services available to some Americans based on their gender, race, or where they live."
"I commend the Committee's Ranking Member, Senator Kennedy for his hard work on this vital legislation, as well as the commitment of Congressman Joe Barton (RTX) and Congressman John Dingell (D-MI) to this issue," Enzi said.
25 years ago this week, the CDC first reported on an unusual pneumonia affecting five previously healthy young men in Los Angeles, California. The cases were later recognized as the first reported cases of AIDS in the United States.
http://help.senate.gov/Maj_press/2006_06_06.pdf