Discriminatory Design: HIV Treatment in the Marketplace

The Affordable Care Act(ACA) has expanded access to medical care and prescription drug coverage for millions of Americans, revolutionizing coverage options for persons living with HIV (PLWH). Access to coverage, however, does not mean that coverage is high-quality or affordable. For PLWH, antiretroviral therapy (ARV) is the cornerstone of maintaining their HIV treatment, but too often, Qualified Health Plans (QHPs) available under the ACA fail to provide robust ARV coverage. This report analyzes the over 91,000 QHPs available on the Federally-Facilitated Marketplaces, assessing each plan’s quality of ARV coverage and pricing.