PRESS
RELEASE CONTACT: Claire Hermann
January
11, 2013 (919) 533-9677, claire@ncaan.org
The North Carolina AIDS Action Network
applauds the state AIDS Drug Assistance Program’s announcement this week that
it will re-expand coverage to include medications for heart disease, Hepatitis
C, mental illness, and other conditions that commonly accompany HIV.
The news comes on top of last fall’s
announcement that the state would officially reopen the program to all
qualified applicants without a waiting list.
“This is good news,” said Claire
Hermann, Communications Program Coordinator at the Network. “It will make it
easier for thousands of North Carolinians living with HIV/AIDS to access medications
that are essential for their health and well-being.”
More than 6,000 low-income North
Carolinians receive medications through North Carolina’s HIV and AIDS drug
assistance programs. Access to care through programs such as the AIDS Drug
Assistance Program is critical to saving lives and reducing medical costs.
The list of medications covered through
the program was cut back in 2010, making getting the proper medications
difficult for many who relied on the program.
For instance, patients who received
drugs through hospital charity programs often had to pick their drugs up in
person every 30 days, a financially and physically challenging situation for
patients who may live more than 100 miles from their nearest provider.
When the re-expanded formulary goes into
effect on January 15, 2013, clients will be able to receive many of those same
medications by mail through the program.
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