Ohio planning to cut HIV-drug program

July 26, 2010 at 12:00a.m.

Staff report

COLUMBUS

The state plans to drop another 500 Ohioans from a program that pays for their HIV medications, in order to save Ohio nearly $3 million per year.

Officials are working on a plan to help only the sickest Ohioans with HIV pay for their medicine, said Jay Carey, a management analyst for the HIV drug program.

The plan, which Carey said likely will start next month, comes after 250 people were dropped from the program earlier this month.

The new cuts propose to limit eligibility based on a count that measures a type of white blood cell.

Earlier this month, the state placed a tighter limit on income eligibility for the program. It also issued a wait list, which means no one who is HIV-positive can start receiving assistance unless someone else stops getting the money. The wait list stands at 19 people and 30 more have applied.

State officials say the cuts are necessary because of an Ohio Department of Health projection of a $16.4 million deficit.

The average cost of HIV medication for someone enrolled in a state program is about $12,000, according to the National Alliance of State and Territorial AIDS Directors. Costs are much higher for those outside a program, according to Ann Lefert, associate director of government relations at the alliance.

Ohio’s decision to drop clients is rare, but not unheard of, Lefert said. Several other states also have opted to add medical criteria to HIV programs.

The cuts have left some Ohioans with HIV confused and worried about how they will afford medication.

Mark Hayden, a client from Cincinnati, said he won’t order more drugs until he knows where he stands in the program.

“The reason I’m healthy is because I’ve had assistance to get my medication,” he said.