ADAP Advocacy Association (aaa+)
2008 Annual Conference
"Access to Care AIDS Initiative"

December 3-5, 2008
Fort Lauderdale, Florida

The ADAP Advocacy Association (aaa+) first annual conference, “Access to care AIDS Initiative” was held from December 3rd-5th, 2008 at the beautiful, beachfront Sheraton Yankee Clipper Hotel in Ft. Lauderdale. It was attended by a diverse group of individuals concerned with AIDS and ADAP advocacy in the United States and its surrounding Territories, including representatives from local and regional ASOs, pharmaceutical, insurance and pharmacy companies, state and local health agencies, national advocacy groups, disability and legal experts, and, most importantly, ADAP consumers.

Before the scheduled events began, a meeting convening the ADAP Consumer Council was held, facilitated by Gary Rose, one of the board directors of TIICANN and aaa+. The purpose of the ADAP Consumer Council is to bring the much-needed voices of ADAP consumers to the national table, and though anyone can join, voting is restricted to actual ADAP consumers. Much more will be announced regarding this important, new, potent force in HIV/AIDS advocacy, beginning with appeals for membership nationwide in the next few weeks.

The educational sessions were kicked-off with a futuristic and intriguing presentation by Dr. Michael Magee, from PositiveHealth.com, who offered a glimpse into a brave new world of medical care; one which is home-based and client-focused. Ben Tesdahl, from Powers, Pyles, Sutter and Verville, P.C. gave an entertaining and informative talk on the rules of non-profit lobbying. Jeff Crowley from the Georgetown Health Policy Institute discussed the challenges faced in insuring PLWAs and the crucial role played by Medicaid, and Edward Hamilton followed that up with true-life examples of the Medicare Part D “donut hole”, TrOOP and the burden such issues place on ADAP funds nationwide.  The day also included two lively discussion panels.  The first panel focused on a post-election analysis and the impact on health care and HIV/AIDS with Bill Arnold of TIICANN, Christine Campbell of Housing Works and Carl Schmid of The AIDS Institute.  The second panel discussed the lingering issue of inadequate ADAPs with Bill Arnold of TIICANN, Christine Campbell of Housing Works and Kathie Hiers of AIDS Alabama (also representing the Southern AIDS Coalition).

Other sessions included Sophia Joyner from Ramsell Public Health Rx and Kevin Lee from Health Management Systems, who showed how proven practices in cost management strategies have resulted in millions of recovered ADAP dollars that are poured back into the system to serve more consumers needing services (New Jersey's ADAP was presentated as a case study). Employment issues affecting PLWAs were discussed by Tom Gloss from the Social Security Administration who spoke about the SSA’s Ticket to Work program, Dr. Steve Lutzky of HCBS STrategies discussed the interplay between Ryan White, Medicare and Medicaid, and Jane Haughian from the Florida Division of Vocational Rehabilitation and Beth Butler from Wachovia Bank discussed the importance of Vocational Rehabilitation in getting people living with HIV/AIDS back to work, and what employers can do when presented with "reasonable accommodation" requests.

In addition to the informative sessions mentioned above, the attendees broke into smaller groups to discuss Walgreen’s new website devoted to HIV/AIDS with company representative Glen Pietrandoni, and the impact of the ADA Amendments Act with Bebe Anderson from Lambda Legal Defense Fund. Daniel Dawes from the American Psychological Association led an emotional discussion regarding the specific mental health issues of PLWAs, and Kathie Hiers from AIDS Alabama and Kali Lindsey from the National Association of People with AIDS (NAPWA) discussed regional disparities in affected populations and federal funding for HIV/AIDS services, with an emphasis on communities of color. Each presentation was followed by animated "listening sessions", where questions were raised and answered and individual perspectives and experiences were shared.

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