Gillibrand’s AIDS Record
Will Gillibrand pick up where Clinton left off on HIV/AIDS?
Poor people with AIDS in New York lost a staunch ally in the Senate when President Obama appointed Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State. But new Senator Kirsten Gillibrand’s record and praise from health advocates who have worked with her leaves us with the impression that she has the potential to be a strong ally in the fight against AIDS, as well as in other health care battles.
“She’s been receptive to hearing from us,” said Michelle McClave, executive director of the AIDS Council of Northeastern New York, noting Gillibrand’s $89,000 earmark for an HIV youth outreach initiative at the organization. At a meeting hosted by Al Sharpton in Harlem Saturday, Gillibrand stated that fighting HIV would be a priority for her.
“She very much understands the problems of the working middle-class and working poor,” said Carol Blowers, Family Planning Advocates vice president of governmental affairs, who lives in Gillibrand’s former Senate district.
Blowers said Gillibrand had been a “very, very staunch partner with us on reproductive care issues” and took leadership in opposing Bush’s Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS) regulation that would have devastated clinic outpatient reimbursement in New York. Blowers said Gillibrand set up a meeting with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to voice her opposition to the bill.
During her time in the House, Gillibrand has supported a number of progressive health care, human rights and social services bills. Here’s a snapshot:
- voted in favor of allowing Washington, D.C. to fund needle exchange programs with local funds
- stated support for the Early Treatment for HIV Act (ETHA) to allow states to provide Medicaid coverage for HIV-positive people. She didn’t co-sponsor (one of the reasons for not-stellar 80 percent rating from the Human Rights Campaign).
- co-sponsored a bill ensuring access to and funding for contraception
- voted in favor of the Second Chance Act, which provides funding for ex-prisoners’ training, counseling and other support
- voted in favor of expanding the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) to six million more children
- voted in favor of the Employment Nondiscrimination Act (ENDA)
- supports gay marriage (as of last week, but still!)
Things that make you go hmmm…
One Gillibrand position that raised community health care advocates’ eyebrows was her opposition to Gov. Spitzer’s Medicaid cuts in 2007, which was the beginning of the shifting of Medicaid dollars from inpatient to outpatient care. But Gillibrand’s stance was intended to support the hospital in her district. Now that she is representing the entire state—and these Medicaid changes are endorsed both by Gov. Paterson and the Obama administration—insiders expressed confidence that she’ll get on board with the changes.
Another issue of concern is Gillibrand’s “anti-immigration record,” which includes opposing amnesty for illegal immigrants and having New York law enforcement officials enforce Draconian immigration laws. Chung-Wha Hong, executive director of the New York Immigration Coalition, told the New York Times, “The quicker and the clearer she distances herself from some of the positions that are associated with anti-immigrant extremists, the better signal it is for immigrant communities.”
Blowers thinks that Gillibrand will be willing to consider opposing viewpoints. “I encourage people to sit down with her. She’s someone who really listens,” Blowers said.
Posted on January 30, 2009 at 2:19 am
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