Bill Clinton: “Thank you. [Dr. Hitt emphasized the need for better AIDS awareness efforts in ethnic communities, noting that many…”

“Thank you. [Dr. Hitt emphasized the need for better AIDS awareness efforts in ethnic communities, noting that many Americans infected with HIV were unaware of it. He stated that thousands of HIV-infected people could not get the Public Health Service recommended early treatment, but instead had to wait until they became disabled from the disease to become eligible. Council member Rabbi Joseph Edelheit remarked that the Council's duty was to ensure that help and treatment, such as needle- exchange programs and drug therapies, for those living with HIV/AIDS continued into the next century. He presented the President with a dreidel, the traditional Hanukkah toy, and said the Council's hope was to revive the President's vision of a zero rate of transmission and equitable access to care. Council member B. Thomas Henderson, a person living with HIV, noted the progress made under the President's leadership, but pointed out the need for reform in Medicaid coverage for HIV/AIDS to enable patients to receive early treatment prior to disability. Citing a Health Care Financing Administration evaluation which concluded that could not be done in a budget-neutral manner, Mr. Henderson suggested that the administration needed to look for offset cost savings beyond Medicaid and consider a budget window longer than 5 years, rather than relying solely on demonstration-program legislation introduced by Senators Jeffords and Kennedy. He concluded that drug cost issues needed to be addressed at the same time.]”