The Hill News

Our nation’s political capital, Washington D.C. also has the notorious distinction of being the HIV and AIDS capital of the United States, with at least 3 percent of its residents infected. This rate is higher than most countries in West Africa and exceeds the 1% cut-off that marks the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s definition of a generalized epidemic. Many patients with this disease also suffer from complications like kidney failure and anemia. New high-tech therapies for treatment of HIV/AIDs, however, have turned what was once a terminal illness into a potentially chronic, manageable condition.

Since 1987, we have witnessed the transformation of HIV/AIDS care and treatment from one drug (AZT) to over 31 drugs. Patients no longer need a cocktail of 15 pills per day in their daily regimen to function â€" they can now function on just a few. Given this rate of innovation, The AIDS Institute, along with other community partners, has supp! orted legislation that would promote the flow of innovative drugs for the treatment of HIV/AIDS and other diseases and conditions. This includes support for biologic medicines, which are the new frontier for long-term management of HIV/AIDS.

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