The Early Treatment for HIV Act (or ETHA) (S. 833 and H.R. 1616) is a bill introduced in the U.S. Senate.
The stated purpose of the bill is "to amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to permit States the option to provide Medicaid coverage for low-income individuals infected with HIV."
Problems with Medicaid Coverage Before ETHA
editBefore the Early Treatment for HIV act, adults with asymptomatic HIV were ineligible to receive SSI income until they had developed AIDS. This is due to a person being unable to receive SSI payments unless they are classified as disabled. Many individuals were not able to receive medical care for their HIV because they did not quality for Medicaid, and their symptoms continued to progress without treatment.
ETHA (S. 860) would help adults with asymptomatic HIV receive treatment, which will slow the development of AIDS and lessen the severity of their symptoms. It would also result in a lower viral count for those treated, which means AIDS will be less likely to spread from that person to someone else.
Previous Versions of the Bill
edit| Congress | Short title | Bill number(s) | Date introduced | Sponsor(s) | # of cosponsors | Latest status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 106th Congress | Early Treatment for HIV Act of 1999 | H.R. 1591 | April 28, 1999 | Nancy Pelosi
(D-CA) |
73 | Died in committee |
| S. 902 | April 28, 1999 | Robert Torricelli
(D-NJ) |
5 | Died in committee | ||
| 107th Congress | Early Treatment for HIV Act of 2001 | H.R. 2063 | June 5, 2001 | Nancy Pelosi
(D-CA) |
152 | Died in committee |
| S. 987 | June 5, 2001 | Robert Torricelli
(D-NJ) |
12 | Died in committee | ||
| 108th Congress | Early Treatment for HIV Act of 2004 | H.R. 3859 | February 26, 2004 | Nancy Pelosi
(D-CA) |
156 | Died in committee |
| Early Treatment for HIV Act of 2003 | S. 847 | April 9, 2003 | Gordon H. Smith
(R-OR) |
33 | Died in committee | |
| 109th Congress | Early Treatment for HIV Act of 2005 | S. 311 | February 8, 2005 | Gordon H. Smith
(R-OR) |
38 | Died in committee |
| 110th Congress | Early Treatment for HIV Act of 2007 | H.R. 3326 | August 2, 2007 | Eliot Engel
(D-NY) |
168 | Died in committee |
| S. 860 | March 13, 2007 | Gordon H. Smith
(R-OR) |
38 | Died in committee | ||
| 111th Congress | Early Treatment for HIV Act of 2009 | H.R. 1616 | March 19, 2009 | Eliot Engel
(D-NY) |
187 | Died in committee |
| S. 833 | April 20, 2009 | Chuck Schumer
(D-NY) |
37 | Died in committee | ||
| 112th Congress | Early Treatment for HIV Act of 2012 | H.R. 6006 | June 21, 2012 | Eliot Engel
(D-NY) |
1 | Died in committee |
In the 110th Congress, ETHA (S. 860 was introduced in the U.S. Senate on March 13, 2007. The bill was sponsored by Senators Gordon Smith (R-OR) with 38 cosponsors including Hillary Clinton (D-NY) and Bernie Sanders (I-VT).
Previous versions of the bill were introduced in the Republican-controlled 106th, 107th, 108th, and 109th Congresses. In each case, the bill never made it out of committee.