Last week, a $1.1
trillion spending package, was passed by both the House and Senate and
signed by President Trump, ensuring the federal government will stay open until
the conclusion of the fiscal year at the end of September. And, while this FY17
budget will provide most HIV programs with level funding for the next few months,
there is little cause for celebration as a much bigger and potentially
devastating budgetary showdown is on the horizon.
What does the future of HIV funding look like in the next fiscal
year? The short answer is that it’s difficult to tell at this early stage, but it
doesn’t look good. With the budget proposal deadline approaching on May 23,
advocates are interested in how the administration prioritizes people living
with HIV. In March, the “skinny
budget” was released with financially large cuts for the National Institutes
of Health, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Environmental
Protection Agency, small independent agencies, and more.

Although the budget request is not final, sources indicate that
Trump plans
$800 billion in cuts over the course of 10
years from entitlement programs such as Medicaid and Social Security
Disability Services. There is no indication which programs could be cut beyond
Medicaid but means-tested mandatory spending programs that are at-risk include
food stamps, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, Supplemental Security
Income, child nutrition programs, and the Pell Grant program. As of right now,
the Trump Administration has continued to insist that the President is intent
on keeping promises made on the campaign trail and on his
social
media platforms not to cut Medicare and Social Security, but these promises ring
especially hollow as he has also repeatedly promised not to cut Medicaid.
These concerns are compounded by the recently passed House version
of the American Health Care Act which
effectively ends Medicaid as we know it by ending the expansion and turning it
into a per capita cap program. According to the Congressional Budget Office
(CBO) score released for the bill’s first version released in March, the AHCA
would cut Medicaid spending by $880
billion over the next decade. There is no reason to believe that the revised
AHCA, which is due in less than two weeks, will fare any better. There is also
concern with the future of funding towards the Department of Labor and
Department of Housing and Urban Development that would impede the holistic
progress of ending the HIV epidemic.
At AIDS United, we are very skeptical of the FY18 budget and
appropriations cycle. We will continue to work alongside our national and
grassroots partners to reverse the cuts to Part C programs in the Ryan White
Care Act and to STD prevention. Our advocacy will continue to hold the
administration and Congress accountable for increased funding in the interest
of ending the HIV epidemic.
Posted By: AIDS United, Policy Department - Friday, May 12, 2017
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