Clinton/Gore '96 The Briefing Room
Bill Clinton & Al Gore on the Issues



Fighting AIDS—Care, Research, Prevention
AIDS inflicts tragedy on too many families. But ultimately, it is a disease; one we can defeat just as we have defeated polio, many forms of cancer, and other scourges in the history of our nation. How can we do it? With commitment and courage and constancy, and with vocal and responsible leadership from our nation’s government.”

—President Bill Clinton

HIV/AIDS is a national public-health emergency.  Every day, the disease affects more people in more communities. Preventing HIV infection, finding a cure for AIDS, and providing quality care and treatment for those living with the disease are top priorities for President Clinton. He is providing the commitment and leadership that are making the difference by:

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Increasing overall AIDS funding by more than 56 percent in four years.
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Creating the Office of National AIDS Policy at the White House to bring greater direction and visibility to the war on AIDS.
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Convening the first-ever White House Conference on HIV and AIDS and appointing the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV and AIDS, composed of a group of whom 30 percent are HIV-positive and 50 percent are self-identified lesbian or gay.
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Increasing funding for the Ryan White CARE Act 186 percent in four years to nearly $1 billion.
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Tripling federal funding for the AIDS Drug Assistance Program to help those without insurance coverage obtain prescription drugs.
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Strengthening the Office of AIDS Research at NIH and vesting it with new authority to plan and carry out the AIDS research agenda.
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Accelerating AIDS drug approval to record times. In four years, the FDA has approved 16 new AIDS drugs and 3 new diagnostic tests.
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Doubling funding for Housing Opportunities for People with AIDS.
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Winning the fight to preserve the Medicaid guarantee of coverage for the more than 50 percent of people living with AIDS who rely on Medicaid for health coverage.
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Revising eligibility rules for Social Security Disability Insurance to make it easier for people with HIV to qualify for benefits.
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Signing the Kassebaum-Kennedy Health Insurance and Portability and Accountability Act, which bans insurance discrimination against people with pre-existing medical conditions, including HIV/AIDS.
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Launching a four-year $100 million effort to develop topical microbicides to allow people to protect themselves from HIV.
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Establishing the HIV prevention community planning partnership, which empowers local communities to make decisions about the direction of AIDS protection programs.
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Launching the Prevention Marketing Initiative, focusing on the risk to young adults (aged 18 to 25) with frank public service announcements recommending sexual abstinence and, for those who are sexually active, the correct and consistent use of latex condoms.
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Vigorously enforcing the Americans with Disabilities Act, which prohibits discrimination against people with HIV/AIDS. More than 800 charges of AIDS-related discrimination have been settled in four years.
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Leading the fight to repeal the discriminatory “Dornan Amendment,” which would have discharged all HIV-positive military personnel.
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Creating the Forum for Collaborative HIV Research to improve knowledge of HIV treatment methods.
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Working with AIDS activists to protect the rights of immigrants with HIV and people living with AIDS enrolled in managed care plans.
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Creating the Advisory Commission on Consumer Protection and Quality in the Health Care Industry to increase consumers’ rights.


Building on Our Progress

To protect our families, President Clinton will continue to fight for funding for AIDS research, prevention, and care.

He will continue to work with business and religious leaders, community organizations, the pharmaceutical industry, and those living with the disease to improve our national response to HIV/AIDS by:

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Eliminating barriers to AIDS vaccine and drug development and their approval. Vice President Gore is leading an effort to increase cooperation between the federal government and the pharmaceutical industry on AIDS research and drug development.
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Protecting the federal guarantee of Medicaid coverage for people living with HIV/AIDS.
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Continuing strong support for the Office of AIDS Research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to provide greater focus and direction for our national AIDS research effort.
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Decreasing the number of infants born with HIV by administering AZT to HIV positive women during pregnancy and delivery and to infants after birth.
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Supporting efforts to protect health care professionals in the workplace.
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Establishing a national goal to reduce the number of new HIV infections each year until AIDS is eradicated.
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Working to eliminate AIDS-related discrimination in the workplace, health care institutions, employment, and housing.
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Collaborating with business leaders to increase workplace AIDS education to help reduce the stigma attached to HIV/AIDS.
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Working with parents, schools, clergy, and youth advocates to reduce the number of adolescents and young adults becoming infected with HIV.

Meeting Our Challenges * Protecting Our Values



Paid for by Clinton/Gore ’96 General Committee, Inc.