AIDS Activists Call on Bush to Address AIDS in State of the Union Speech

AIDS activists say that while President Bush is expected to devote much of his 2006 State of the Union address to health care issues, they're insisting he fulfill the commitments he made in last year's speech. "Because HIV/AIDS brings suffering and fear into so many lives, I ask you to reauthorize the Ryan White [CARE] Act to encourage prevention, and provide care and treatment to the victims of that disease," the president said last February 2.

But the Ryan White Act was not renewed when it expired in the fall, and Congress has yet to address it this year, says the Ryan White Action Campaign, launched by a coalition of AIDS service groups and activists. Ryan White programs are continuing to function under last year's funding levels, which were already too inadequate to meet the needs of all the nation's HIVers, the campaign says.

"President Bush needs to remind Congress in this year's State of the Union address that renewing the Ryan White Act is extremely important for Americans with HIV/AIDS," says Howard Grossman, executive director of the American Academy of HIV Medicine, one of the agencies participating in the campaign. "The president has made the United States a leader in the fight against global AIDS. In this year's State of the Union address, we hope to hear him continue his commitment to fighting HIV/AIDS at home as well." (Advocate.com)