HHS Awards $2.27 Billion in Grants to Help Americans Access HIV/AIDS Care, Support Services, and Medication

Cross-posted from HHS Newsroom

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced [last Friday] approximately $2.27 billion in Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program grants were awarded to cities, counties, states, and local community-based organizations in fiscal year (FY) 2019. This funding through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) supports a comprehensive system of HIV primary medical care, medication, and essential support services to more than half a million people with HIV in the United States.

“The Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program has played a major role in the improved outcomes we see for Americans with HIV,” said HHS Secretary Alex Azar. “Thanks to expanded access to treatment and medical advances, HIV/AIDS has gone from being a likely death sentence to a condition that allows a nearly normal lifespan if properly treated. Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program clients, despite often very challenging circumstances, have a viral suppression rate that far exceeds the national average. The successes of the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program are in part thanks to how the program cares for the needs of the whole person, including non-health factors. With President Trump’s new initiative to end the HIV epidemic in America by 2030, we will build on the successes of the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program to connect Americans, especially in the communities most at risk, to the treatment and prevention services they need.”

"For nearly three decades, HRSA’s Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program has played a critical role in the United States' response to ending the HIV epidemic,” said HRSA Acting Administrator Tom Engels. "These grants will help ensure that Americans with HIV/AIDS have access to life-saving care and treatment needed to improve their health quality and medical outcomes."

HRSA oversees the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program, which provides care and treatment services to low income people with HIV who are among the hardest to reach populations. The program serves approximately 50 percent of people with diagnosed HIV infection in the United States. In 2017, approximately 86 percent of Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program clients who received HIV medical care were virally suppressed, up from 69 percent in 2010. The Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program will play a leading role in continuing to diagnose, treat, prevent, and respond to HIV as part of the Administration’s Ending the HIV Epidemic: A Plan for America initiative.

HRSA’s Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program is critical to improving health outcomes and reducing HIV transmission by improving access to HIV treatment and antiretroviral medication. People with HIV who take HIV medication daily as prescribed and who reach and maintain an undetectable viral load have effectively no risk of sexually transmitting the virus to a partner without HIV.

Under Part A of the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program, approximately $628.3 million was awarded to 52 metropolitan areas to provide core medical and support services for people with HIV. These grants were awarded to 24 eligible metropolitan areas and 28 transitional grant areas with the highest number of people with HIV and AIDS and also experiencing increases in HIV and AIDS cases and emerging care needs. For a list of the FY 2019 Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program Part A award recipients, visit https://hab.hrsa.gov/about-ryan-white-hivaids-program/part-a-grants-emerging-metro-transitional-areas/fy2019-awards.

Under Part B of the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program, approximately $1.3 billion was awarded to 59 states and territories to improve the quality, availability and organization of HIV health care and support services and for the AIDS Drug Assistance Program (ADAP). Additionally, 16 states received Emerging Community grants based on the number of AIDS cases over the most recent five-year period. In addition, 31 states and territories were also awarded approximately $11.2 million in Part B Minority AIDS Initiative grants. For a list of the FY 2019 Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program Part B award recipients, visit https://hab.hrsa.gov/about-ryan-white-hivaids-program/part-b-grants-states-territories/fy2019-awards.

Under Part C Early Intervention Services (EIS) of the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program, approximately $181.8 million was awarded across the country to 349 local, community-based organizations to provide core medical and support services to people with HIV. Additionally, 76 organizations were awarded approximately $10.2 million in Part C Capacity Development grants. For a list of the FY 2019 Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program Part C EIS award recipients, visit https://hab.hrsa.gov/about-ryan-white-hivaids-program/part-c-early-intervention-services-and-capacity-development-program-grants/fy2019-eis-awards. For a list of the FY 2019 Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program Part C Capacity Development award recipients, visit https://hab.hrsa.gov/about-ryan-white-hivaids-program/part-c-early-intervention-services-and-capacity-development-program-grants/fy2019-capacity-awards.

Under Part D of the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program, approximately $69.7 million was awarded to 115 local community-based organizations across the country to provide family-centered comprehensive HIV care and treatment for women, infants, children, and youth with HIV. For a list of the FY 2019 Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program Part D award recipients, visit https://hab.hrsa.gov/about-ryan-white-hivaids-program/part-d-services-women-infants-children-and-youth/fy2019-awards.

Under Part F of the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program, approximately $66.7 million was awarded to support clinical training, oral health services, quality improvement, and the development of innovative models of care through several different programs. Approximately $9.1 million was awarded to 48 recipients through the Dental Reimbursement Program, and approximately $3.5 million was awarded to 12 recipients through the Community-Based Dental Partnership Program. For a list of the FY 2019 Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program Part F Dental Reimbursement Program award recipients and Community-Based Dental Partnership Program award recipients, visit https://hab.hrsa.gov/about-ryan-white-hivaids-program/part-f-dental-programs/fy2019-awards.

Also under Part F, the AIDS Education and Training Centers (AETC) Program awarded approximately $29.2 million through 14 grants and cooperative agreements to support education and training of health care professionals, which includes a network of eight regional and two national centers. For a list of the FY 2019 Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program AETC award recipients, visit https://hab.hrsa.gov/about-ryan-white-hivaids-program/part-f-aids-education-and-training-centers-aetc-program/fy2019-awards.

In addition, $25 million was awarded through the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program Special Projects of National Significance (SPNS) Program under Part F, which supports the development of innovative models of care, informing evidence-based interventions for populations with HIV who are significantly difficult to engage, retain in care, and reach and sustain viral suppression with antiretroviral therapy. For a list of current SPNS initiatives, visit here.

Grant awards in FY 2019 also support states, cities, counties, and communities to achieve the goals of the National HIV/AIDS Strategy for the United States: Updated to 2020. These include efforts to reduce new HIV cases, increase access to HIV care and improve health outcomes for people with HIV, and reduce HIV-related disparities and health inequities.

To learn more about HRSA’s Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program, visit hab.hrsa.gov. For more information about HRSA’s role in the Ending the HIV Epidemic initiative, visit www.hrsa.gov/ending-HIV-epidemic. For more information about HIV/AIDS prevention, testing, treatment, and research, visit HIV.gov.