Healthcare Issue

HIV/AIDS

Description

HIV/AIDS is among the top ten healthcare issues plaguing the United States. An approximate 1.2 million people are living with HIV/AIDS in the United States today with 14% of them unaware of their infected HIV status. Statistics show that in the year 2015 there were an estimated 38,500 new HIV infections. Statistics also say that gay, bisexual and men who have sex with other men represent 26,200 of the new infections showing that they have the greatest burden due to their risk group. In 2017, 38,739 people received new HIV infection diagnoses in the United States with the annual number of new HIV diagnosis in the United States stabilizing from 2012 to 2016. There is an uneven distribution of HIV diagnosis in the United States with 52%, 19,968 of the 38,739 new HIV diagnosis came from the South of the United States. HIV/AIDS offers a platform for the examination of the US healthcare system. New treatments available have the potential of prolonging the lives of people with HIV/AIDS but only if they have access to health care. However, there is still an increasing number of new infections among people with poor access to healthcare with restrictions on Medicaid eligibility contributing to the uneven access to the most important safety net source of HIV care funding. As a result, many poor people living with HIV/AIDS go without care even though aggregate spending on care related to HIV totaled $7.7 billion in the 2000 fiscal year. This amount is more than sufficient to cover the cost of care for more than half of people living with HV/AIDS. With this in mind in assessment ought to be conducted to help in the creation of a more rational model of care for people living with HIV/AIDS, which could be replicated for all other health issues in the United States.

Administration (President Name)    Obama administration    Trump Administration

Describe the administrative agenda focus related to this issue    On July 30, 2015, the Executive Order launching the National HIV/AIDS Strategy was signed by President Obama. It has recently been updated to 2020, and it builds on the five years of progress since the release of the first comprehensive National HIV/AIDS Strategy. There have been some significant changes in the National HIV/AIDS strategy such as the expansion of the prevention tool kit to include Pre-Exposure Propholaxis (PrEP), which reduces the risk of HIV contraction by up to 92% if taken with consistency. PrEP also minimizes the chance of transmission by 96%. Millions of people now have access to affordable and quality health coverage due to the Affordable Care Act. This act means that there is no denial of coverage for pre-existing conditions such as HIV. Federal guidelines now recommend routine HIV screening for persons between the ages of 25 and 65 (Munoz, 2019). The Federal HIV treatment guidelines now recommend ARV therapy for everyone living with HIV.    In December 2018, President Donald Trump signed the bill reauthorizing the Presidents Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) through the year 2023. This program is engaged in activities such as antiretroviral treatment, HIV-preventing male circumcision and other efforts involved in the prevention and treatment of HIV/AID (Matthews, 2019)

The PEPFAR program reauthorized by President Trump provides billions in annual funding for antiretroviral therapy, HIV-preventing male circumcision and other efforts involved in the prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Allocation of financial and other resources to this issue

In 2009, president Obama reauthorized the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program by signing the Ryan White Treatment Extension Act. Today the program serves over half of the people living with HIV/AIDS in the United States with its $2.32 billion funding.

In the year 2011 President Obama announced $35 million in emergency funds for the AIDS Drug Assistance Program, who at the time had a waiting list of over 9,000 people living with HIV/AIDS.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Notes on Administration’s approach to the issue    In my opinion, the Obama administration had an excellent approach to dealing with the healthcare issue of HIV/AIDS. Reinstatement of the Ryan White Foundation was a significant move as it facilitated the service of over half of the United States population living with HIV/AIDS.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The PEPFAR reinstatement is a good move on Trump’s part.

General Notes/Comments

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Which administrative agency would most likely be responsible for helping you address the healthcare issue you selected?

The United States government has assigned multiple government agencies the responsibility of addressing the HIV/AIDS healthcare issue. HIV.gov is one such agency which is dedicated to increasing HIV testing among high risk communities and providing access to Federal HIV information by use of emerging communication strategies. The Bureau of the Census is responsible for providing the numbers of people living with HIV/AIDS at a given time.  Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) have extensive resources from the federal agency in charge of administering Medicare and Medicaid to cater for HV/AIDS patients. In spite of the availability of all these agencies, the Department of Health and Human Services is more likely going to be responsible for addressing the issue of HIV/AIDS. This is because this department is responsible for government-funded hospitals, which is where the majority of the population seeks medical help. This department can supply hospitals with medication to prolong the lives of people living with HIV/AIDS known as anti-retroviral drugs. The department of health and human services serves the whole of the United States which means it is likely to cover more ground in the crusade for providing healthcare to everyone living with HIV/AIDS.

How does the healthcare issue get on the agenda and how does it stay there?

The only way the HIV/AIDS health issue changes for the better is if gets on the political agenda and it stays there. Without the political will to encourage HIV prevention activities the AIDS pandemic will continue to view as another health issue competing for resources with other departments of the health sector. Our elective representatives are the ones with the power to table such agendas on the political forum with the aim of making policy changes to the effect of making it easier for everyone living with HIV/AIDS to access medical care. Consistently electing representative passionate about the AIDS healthcare issues ensures that it gets on the political agenda and stays there.

Who was the entrepreneur/champion/sponsor of the healthcare issue you selected?

During this time President Obama was the champion of the HIV/AIDS healthcare issue.

Talking Points

Healthcare Access for Poor People

Availability of ARVs and PREP at all medical facilities free of charge

Regular HIV/AIDS Screening on persons between the ages of 15 & 65.

Elimination of Discrimination on HIV/AIDS patients

Increased funding for HIV/AIDS-related health issues.

The healthcare issue of HIV/AIDS is essential as it affects more than a million people living in the United States. The average of new HIV infections yearly is about 30,000 cases which is still a large number. HIV/AIDS could quickly become a pandemic if the appropriate steps are not taken to make sure that the ailing receive the medical help in addition to increased vigilance on prevention. It is due to this reason that it ought to be among the top political agendas for anything to change for the better. In many health facilities, the nurse is usually the first point of contact for a patient, which makes them relevant in setting the agenda for healthcare issues. They understand the patient and the hospital needs required to improve the delivery of treatment services.

 

 

 

 

References

 

Levi, J., & Kates, J. (2000). HIV: challenging the health care delivery system. American journal of public health, 90(7), 1033-6.

 

Matthews, D. (2019). Trump called for an end to HIV in the US by 2030. That’s totally realistic. Retrieved from     https://www.vox.com/2019/2/5/18210455/state-of-the-union-2019-trump-hiv-health

Munoz, C. (2019). What We’ve Done to Address HIV/AIDS in America during the Obama Administration. Retrieved from     https://medium.com/@Cecilia44/what-weve-done-to-address-hiv-aids-in-america-during-the-obama-administration-    999fbdcb8616

 
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