A spending bill that would send more AIDS money to the South passed a House committee Wednesday despite opposition from some big-state lawmakers who said it shortchanged their states.
Representatives from the South and rural states said revisions to the Ryan White CARE Act of 1990 were necessary because of how the epidemic has changed over the years.
Once a big-city illness mainly infecting gay white men, AIDS now is prevalent in the South and among minorities. But, according to government studies, federal support has not kept pace. A patient in California, for example, gets more money than a patient in Alabama, by some estimates.
"It shouldn't matter where you live in the country when it comes to accessing medical care and therapy," said Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. "I don't think that's right."
The changes to the $2.1 billion annual program, the largest one specifically for people with HIV/AIDS, passed Barton's committee by a 38-10 vote.
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