HIV Uninsured Care Programs

The New York State Department of Health AIDS Institute has established four programs for the HIV uninsured population: ADAP – AIDS Drug Assistance Program, ADAP Plus, the HIV Home Care Program, and the ADAP Plus Insurance Continuation (APIC) Program. The mission of these programs is to provide access to medical services and HIV medications for all residents with HIV/AIDS.

The AIDS Drug Assistance Program (ADAP) began in 1987 as part of a national program to provide free HIV/AIDS drugs to low-income individuals not covered by Medicaid or adequate third-party insurance.

In November 1991, the HIV Home Care Program, modeled on ADAP, was implemented. This initiative was administered by the AIDS Institute’s Chronic Care Unit until March 1993 when it was integrated with ADAP operations.

In October 1992, the New York State Department of Health established ADAP Plus as part of the Uninsured Care Programs for hospital and clinic settings to promote early intervention and improve access to treatment for persons with HIV disease who are uninsured or underinsured.

In July 2000, the ADAP Plus Insurance Continuation (APIC) Program was implemented to assist individuals to pay the premiums for commercial health insurance for applicants who have existing coverage

The NYS Department of Health State AIDS Institute administers the program in NYS.

The programs are funded through a partnership between New York State, New York City, Lower Hudson, Long Island and Duchess counties using funds from Part A and Part B of the federal Ryan White Treatment Modernization Act of 2006. In addition, the New York State Department of Health provides funds, from the New York Public Health Care Reform Act.

ADAP is federally funded through the Ryan White Comprehensive AIDS Resources Emergency (CARE) Act which is administered by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Heath Resources and Services Administration.

There are four HIV uninsured care programs available in NYS: the AIDS Drug Assistance Program (ADAP), ADAP Plus, the HIV home care program, and the ADAP Plus Insurance Continuation Program (APIC).

An applicant for ADAP, ADAP Plus and APIC must be HIV positive, and includes those who are asymptomatic. For home care services, an individual must show an AIDS diagnosis or an HIV illness and chronic medical dependency due to physical or cognitive impairment from HIV infection. There are no citizenship/ immigration criteria for these programs. Applicants must be residents of New York State and have liquid assets of $25,000 or less. Income eligibility is based on 435% of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL).

A single application form can be used to enroll in ADAP, ADAP Plus and the HIV Home Care Program. A different application is required for APIC. A separate medical application, signed by a licensed medical professional verifying HIV-infection and indicating the applicant’s medical status, must be also be submitted for all 4 programs. In addition, a treatment plan by a physician must also be submitted for Home Care applicants.