Brody's Notes... President Obama Signs Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Extension Act & Lifts HIV/AIDS Entry Ban

President Barack Obama, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and other Congressional Leaders applaud Ryan White's mother Jeanne White-Ginder during signing ceremony     Official White House Photo

By Brody Levesque (Bethesda, Maryland) Oct 31 | In a White House ceremony yesterday the President signed the 2009 Ryan White Act extension, before which he announced that the administration would be lifting the HIV/AIDS travel ban by early next year. In his remarks, he said;

"We talk about reducing the stigma of this disease, yet we've treated a visitor living with it as a threat. If we want to be the global leader in combating HIV/AIDS, we need to act like it."

The United States is one of only a dozen countries that still bar the entry of people with HIV. According to the President, lifting the ban is a "step that will encourage people to get tested and get treatment. It's a step that will keep families together, and it's a step that will save lives."

In a separate media release the White House noted that  since 1987, HIV-positive travelers and immigrants have been banned from entering or traveling through the United States without a special waiver.  In July 2008, Congress removed all legislative barriers to repealing the ban and paved the way for HHS to repeal the ban.  A final rule will be published in the Federal Register on Monday, November 2nd and will take effect in early January 2010.  That means that people who have HIV and are not U.S. citizens will be able to enter the U.S. starting in January next year.  This is a major step in ending the stigma associated with HIV.

The President, speaking about the legislation, said he was also pleased that Jeanne White-Ginder, Ryan White’s mother, was present at the bill's signing.

"The Ryan White Program is the largest federal program specifically dedicated to providing HIV care and treatment.  It funds heavily impacted metropolitan areas, states, and local community-based organizations to provide life-saving medical care, medications, and support services to more than half a million people each year:  the uninsured and under-insured, racial and ethnic minorities, people of all ages. It represents our ongoing commitment to ensuring access to needed HIV/AIDS care and treatment," said the President and then added;

"While I have been traveling across the country during the past several weeks for our HIV/AIDS Community Discussions, I am hearing from people living with HIV, nurses, case managers, doctors, community-based service providers, and others about how important the program is to ensure access to care and treatment.  As we continue our work on developing the National HIV/AIDS Strategy, we have many important lessons from the Ryan White Program for increasing access to treatment, helping retain people in care, and improving health outcomes. As we prepare to mark the 20th anniversary of the Ryan White Program next August, the legacy of Ryan White continues to endure."