At least 76 HIV/AIDS patients in Georgia already have signed up for a waiting list for a drug assistance program, two weeks after enrollment closed because of insufficient funding.
"It's an immediate impact," said Lola Thomas, executive director of the AIDS Alliance of Northwest Georgia in Cartersville. "The numbers continue to increase of people needing assistance (through) the program."
Unable to keep up with rising demand, Georgia has closed new enrollment to the federal-state AIDS Drug Assistance Program, which provides HIV/AIDS medications for low-income people.
People who currently are in the program will not lose their benefits, so long as they regularly pick up their medications and re-qualify every six months, advocates say.
The Georgia program's waiting list could reach 1,300 people this year, with a projected 125 added monthly, if more funding doesn't help expand it, state health officials said.
FUNDING
The program gets $12 million in state funding and $33 million in federal funding, but about $11 million more would be needed to meet the additional demand, according to the Georgia Department of Community Health.
In Georgia, high unemployment rates have increased the need for the drug-assistance program, whose enrollment shot up 17 percent in the past year, and now is at capacity with 5,700 enrollees, state officials said.
"Our funding has not decreased in Georgia, but because of the economic situation, many people have lost insurance," said Dr. Anil Mangla, director of infectious disease for the Georgia Division of Public Health. "We have now more people that don't have their meds and now are enrolling in this wait list."
Prescription drug companies have agreed to provide assistance to those placed on the waiting list, so individuals should apply to the program to receive a denial letter, which can be used to access drug company assistance, Dr. Mangla said.
AIDS and HIV medications easily can cost more than $1,000 a month, he said.
INFECTION RATES HIGH IN SOUTH
AIDS DIAGNOSIS IN 2007 BY REGIONSouth: 46 percentWest: 17 percentNortheast: 25 percentMidwest: 11 percentSource: U.S. Centers for Disease Control and PreventionHOW HIV IS - AND IS NOT - TRANSMITTEDHIV is not transmitted through day-to-day activities such as shaking hands, hugging or a casual kiss. You cannot become infected from a toilet seat, drinking fountain, doorknob, dishes, drinking glasses, food, pets or mosquitoes. HIV primarily is found in the blood, semen or vaginal fluid of an infected person. HIV is transmitted primarily through sex, by sharing needles or syringes or being exposed to HIV before or during birth or through breastfeeding.Source: U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
HIV/AIDS infection rates are disproportionately high in the Southern states, and rising more rapidly among black Americans. An estimated 1.1 million people in the United States are living with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, according to federal data.
The news of the waiting list came just days before the Obama administration announced a national strategy to address HIV and AIDS in the United States, including a goal of cutting HIV infections by 25 percent within five years.
The strategy also wants to focus on prevention for high-risk groups, including gay men and blacks, according to the Office of National AIDS Policy. The strategy also focuses on "geographic hot spots" such as the South and Northeast.
Last week, the Obama administration announced $25 million to go toward helping states with AIDS Drug Assistance Program waiting lists, Dr. Mangla said.
NATIONAL LIST HITS 2,000
At least 2,090 people are on such waiting lists nationally, according to the Georgia Department of Community Health.
Georgia health officials hope the funding will help them re-open enrollment sooner but have no estimate as to when that might happen, Dr. Mangla said.
About 46 percent of AIDS diagnoses in 2007 were in the South, more than any other region, according to the latest figures from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Blacks made up 61 percent of AIDS cases in the Southern region, the CDC said.
Cultural taboos about discussing prevention methods such as condom use have contributed to higher rates in the South, Ms. Thomas said.
In addition, "we have the issue of poverty and illiteracy so some of the prevention messages just aren't getting out there to people," she said.
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