| MAP
Advocate |
Vol.10 No. 8
March 1, 2004
Take Action! Call Your Doctor!
OK, this is a weird one. But
it's important.
We need your help in expanding our grassroots network advocating for young
people's rights to access needed health care confidentially. Lawmakers
have heard from young people and parents about the need to maintain this
critical gateway to health care for many adolescence, especially at-risk
youth. But the voice that they need to hear from now is that of the providers
treating young people. Talk to your family practitioner or pediatrician
about minor's consent and encourage them to make a call to their lawmaker
to let them know the reality of what they see in their practice and what
could happen if young people do not get the care they need. Refer them
to Bill Tracker for more information.
Minnesota Senate Education Committee to Hear Comprehensive Sexual Health and Family Life Bill
The Comprehensive Sexual Health and Family Life bill will be heard in
the Senate Education committee on March 4th. SF 2443 is authored by Sen.
Sandy Pappas (DFL-St. Paul) and defines what is comprehensive sexual health
education for school districts, removing some of the confusion created
by the current statute and providing resources to schools. Among the bill's
authors are Democrats, Republicans and Independents, legislators from
all corners of the state, and folks who might differ on tough issues such
as abortion, but who all agree that when it comes to preventing unplanned
pregnancies or STDs, including HIV, comprehensive and medically accurate
information is our best answer. For more information on the bill and what
you can do, visit the Bill Tracker.
Minor's Consent Under Attack in House Health Committee
A proposed repeal of confidentiality in Minnesota's minor's consent law will be heard in the House health committee on March 3rd.. HF 352 was introduced last year by Rep. Tim Wilkin's (R-Eagan) and would eliminate a teen's option to get confidential health care for services related to family planning, preventing STDs, chemical dependency. Under the bill, young people could still consent to such health care, but their records would be open to their parents. This creates a barrier to care that study after study has shown does nothing to change risk behavior in adolescence, but does a lot to turn young people away from needed treatment. For more information on what you can do, see the Take Action piece in this MAP Advocate and check the Bill Tracker.
AIDS Action Day Moves from St. Paul Successes to Duluth Saturday, March 6
Last week, nearly 100 advocates met with over half of the Minnesota Legislature for AIDS Action Day. Lawmakers met directly with consituents and witness the support for comprehensive sexual health education, HIV prevention for African-born communities and a fair and effective strategey addressing this epidemic. This Saturday, MAP will take AIDS Action Day on the road for the first-ever AIDS Action Day Duluth. If you live in the Northeastern corner of the state and want to talk to lawmakers about the need to prevent HIV and provide compassionate care for those affected where you live, register today. AIDS Action Day Duluth will run from 12:30-3:00 pm. On deck are plans for AIDS Action Day - Rochester.
Sunset Clause in Emergency Health Powers Debated
The Emergency Health Powers Act was enacted in 2002. The law spelled out how and under what circumstances the government could quarantine citizens during a health emergency It came to be as a response to fears around bioterrorism. But because the law was far from perfect, legislators enacted it with a sunset provision. Now the debate has begun over removing the sunset clause to make the Act permanent. While a working group convened by the Department of Health has met over the last two years to address concerns that were raised in 2002, the new proposal still fails to address issues of due process, civil liberties and what constitutes a health emergency. Check the Bill Tracker for more updates on this issue.
As health care access and cost moves to the forefront of issues this legislative session, Sen. Linda Berglin (DFL-Minneapolis) has introduced a comprehensive approach to address the problem. The bill provides incentives addressing the nursing shortage to encourage more people to enter the profession, assistance to health providers to switch to computerized medical records, expanding access to mental health coverage for indigent communities and creating insurance purchasing pools for small businesses. A health care forum appointed by Gov. Pawlenty and convened by former Senator David Durenberger found that an overwhelming 80 percent were willing to pay higher taxes in order to provide health care coverage to more people and Minnesotans are insecure about their own coverage.
Sen. Robert Toricelli (D-NJ) introduced the Early Treatment of HIV act in Congress last week allowing expand Medicaid to people living with HIV and give states the option of low-income people with HIV. The bill was introduced with bi-partisan supportincluding 19 Republican and 51 Deocratic cosponsors. Currently, low-ioncome people with HIV are denied Medicaid coverage until they are seriously ill with an AIDS-defining illness, which could often have been prevented with medical treatment. Check the News and Views on the Public Policy page of mnaidsproject.org for further updates on this legislation.
The Minnesota's budget projections are in and the deficit appears to be a bit smaller than feared. Does that mean legislators are going to talk about the 150 people with HIV who lost General Assistance Medical Care (GAMC) and the fact that many believe MAP's $300,000 request for addressing the HIV epidemic among African-born Minnesotans is "unrealistic" given the budget situation?" Nope. But, the Gov and certain legislators seem to thing the new budget numbers open the door for things like funding construction of stadium or two or three. True, MAP has no position on stadium funding. But, it leads us to ask the question, "Are these really Minnesota's priorities?"
It sounds like good news. Secretary of Health and Human Services, Tommy Thompson announced the annual grants from the Ryan White CARE Act going to major urban areas to provide HIV health and social services. Hennepin County will get a little over $3 million to provide services throughout the Twin Cities metropolitan area. Good news because the money is very much needed. Bad news, through, because it represents almost a 5 percent reduction from last year. This, coming at at time when HIV cases are up in Minnesota and state-assisted health coverage is down due to budget cuts implemented by the Governor and the legislature last year. The local planning group responsible for making recommendations about how to spend the money, the HIV Services Planning Council is scheduled to take action this summer. It's not a good picture. As the state budget cuts and pressures of the mounting federal deficit start to hit home, people living with HIV are very likely to see the social services they depend upon starting to be chipped away through the coming year.
MAP Advocate is published by the Minnesota AIDS Project every two weeks while the Minnesota Legislature is in session, and monthly during the rest of the year. It is available through the MAP web site mnaidsproject.org and through email list service. If you wish to order the MAP Advocate, visit our Join the Action Network page, or contact MAP Public Policy by phone or email.
MAP Public Policy
Minnesota AIDS Project
1400 Park Avenue
Minneapolis, MN 55404
612-341-2060
800-373-2437
publicpolicy@mnaidsproject.org
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Friday, March 30, 2007
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