Policy Updates: Hill Happenings and Administration Activities
Hill Happenings
FY2025 Appropriations
The Senate Appropriations Committee is advancing fiscal year 2025 (FY2025) spending bills ahead of the August recess. A full committee mark-up of the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (LHHS) Subcommittee spending bill is scheduled for August 1. The Senate’s progress on drafting the appropriations bills comes on the heels of the House Appropriations Committee’s flurry of activity earlier in the month.
On July 10, the House Appropriations Committee (HAC) approved the LHHS Subcommittee spending bill and released an accompanying report for FY2025, which begins on October 1, 2024. The LHHS bill proposes major cuts to health programs across the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), totaling a decrease of 7% compared to FY2024 enacted levels. The cuts include the elimination of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) component of the Ending the HIV Epidemic Initiative (EHE) and a $190 million cut to the Health Resources and Services (HRSA) Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program (RWHAP). Notably, the subcommittee proposed a $10 million increase for the CDC hepatitis program and a $6.1 million increase for the infectious disease and opioids program.
NASTAD will continue to monitor the congressional appropriations process and advocate for the highest possible funding for HIV, hepatitis, and drug user health programs.
Administration Activities
NASTAD Calls on CMS to Update Guidance on PrEP Coverage
On July 17, NASTAD joined a coalition of 62 organizations and called on the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to update guidance that ensures issuer compliance with the most recent, updated United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommendation for HIV Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP). The USPSTF's most recent A-grade recommendation for PrEP, finalized on August 22, 2023, is not drug specific and includes new medications that significantly expand the HIV prevention toolkit, including the first long-acting PrEP drug. Updated guidance that recognizes that all FDA-approved PrEP medications are incorporated in the USPSTF recommendation would ensure that PrEP users do not experience years of delay before they can access novel PrEP formulations.
HRSA Launches Social Worker Licensure Compact to Expand Mental Health and SUD Treatment Access
On July 16, HHS and the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) announced the first-ever Licensure Portability Grant Program investment in a multi-state social worker licensure compact. State licensure compacts allow states to come together on a common approach to licensing health care providers, allowing providers to practice across state lines without having to apply for a license in each state. HRSA awarded $2.5 million to four grantees to collaborate with licensing on state laws and policies that reduce barriers to telehealth, including mental health care and responding to the opioid epidemic.
CDC Observes World Hepatitis Day
On July 28, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) observed World Hepatitis Day. This year’s theme, “It’s time for action,” is a call to help accelerate global efforts in the prevention, screening, and treatment of viral hepatitis. Click here to access campaign resources that can help you take action to end this entirely preventable disease.
Resources
OIDP NOFO: Supporting Vaccine Confidence
Deadline: August 21, 2024 at 6.00 pm ET
This initiative seeks to expand, plan, implement, and evaluate promising practices and develop novel approaches to increase vaccine confidence in local communities, particularly partnerships with organizations that work with populations with low vaccination rates (e.g., African Americans and residents in rural communities). Practical solutions at local levels are needed to help support vaccination efforts in communities by healthcare providers, immunization program managers, immunization advocates, vaccine manufacturers, and other stakeholders. OIDP anticipates the availability of approximately $1,000,000 for this funding opportunity to support four awards ranging from $250,000 to $115,000 per year for up to three years. OIDP and ORHO will support activities by public health departments, community organizations, academic institutions, professional or trade organizations, and immunization coalitions, among others, that work with populations with low vaccination rates.
HepVu Webinar: New Hepatitis C Prevalence Updates Webinar
“On July 17, HepVu hosted a webinar with prominent viral hepatitis experts to discuss new Hepatitis C prevalence estimates as published in HepVu Fellow Dr. Eric Hall and Project Director Heather Bradley's paper titled "Estimating hepatitis C in the United States, 2017-2020." The paper was published in Hepatology with colleagues at Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Emory Coalition for Applied Modeling for Prevention (CAMP), and found that there are approximately 4 million people living with Hepatitis C in the United States, rather than the previously accepted estimate of 2.4 million.”
“Substantial progress has been made in the World Health Organization Region of the Americas in reducing the prevalence of chronic hepatitis B virus infection in children through vaccination.”
O’Neill Institute: HIV at an Inflection Point
“This moment demands that all stakeholders affirm their commitment to the long-term effort to support all people with HIV and the people and places for whom HIV remains a serious threat. This summarizes a series of three briefs we are releasing to provide actionable policy solutions to sustain and continue our remarkable progress.”
Job Postings
Government Affairs Manager – HIV+Hepatitis Policy Institute
The Government Affairs Manager will be responsible for advocating policy positions before the United States Congress, federal agencies, and state officials. Primary focus will be on securing adequate appropriations for domestic HIV and hepatitis prevention and treatment programs. Additional areas of focus include Congressional and federal agency consideration of issues that impact access and affordability of health care, including prescription medications. On occasion, state legislative and agency communication will also be part of the portfolio. For further details and to apply by July 19, 2024 please click here.
Director, HIV Prevention -- Tennessee Department of Health
This role is responsible for overseeing and administering the entire portfolio of HIV Prevention activities supported by TDH and our community-based organization partners statewide. In addition to leading an internal team of eleven direct and shared staff, this role will also be responsible for maintaining strong relationships with a wide variety of external stakeholders, including our CBO partners, metro Health Department leadership, and the United Way of Middle TN.
Communicable Disease Epidemiologist – Cheyenne, Wyoming
This position will serve as the Communicable Disease AIDS Drug Assistance Program (ADAP) Coordinator, Wyoming TB Controller, and Disease Intervention Specialist (DIS) for the Communicable Disease (CD) Treatment Program. Assist in outbreak response to ensure the safety of Wyoming residents; by interviewing cases for exposure information, updating news outlets on the progress of outbreak control, analyzing exposure data utilizing epidemiological and statistical methods.
Open Positions – New York State
The New York State Department of Health, in partnership with Health Research, Inc, has various job openings, including some within the AIDS Institute. Please visit this link to learn about their current opportunities.
News Bulletin
The Role of Health Care in the New Presidential Election
“There is no Clinton health reform plan or (then) controversial Obamacare plan to command the attention of voters in this presidential election. Former President Trump will focus on other issues he views as advantageous—not health care—and Vice President Harris is unlikely to make new health proposals of her own. Nevertheless, health is likely to be a consequential factor in the campaign. Here’s how.”
Guest Editorial: To Address the Fentanyl Crisis, Greater Access to Methadone Is Needed
“Over the past two decades, the opioid crisis has accelerated the integration of addiction care in the U.S. with mainstream medicine. Yet methadone, the oldest and still one of the most effective medications in our OUD treatment toolkit, remains siloed. In the current era of powerful synthetic opioids like fentanyl dominating the statistics on drug addiction and overdose, it is time to make this effective medication more accessible to all who could benefit. The recent rules making permanent the COVID-19 provisions are an essential step in the right direction, but it will be critical to pursue other ways that methadone can safely be made more available to a wider range of patients with OUD.”
“A new report released today by UNAIDS shows that the world is at a critical moment that will determine whether world leaders meet their commitment to end AIDS as a public health threat by 2030. The report, The Urgency of Now: AIDS at a Crossroads, brings together new data and case studies which demonstrate that the decisions and policy choices taken by world leaders this year will decide the fate of millions of lives and whether the world’s deadliest pandemic is overcome.”