On Friday, the ACLU of Idaho announced a joint lawsuit with the National Immigration Law Center and several private law firms over House Bill 135, which will cut non-emergency health care benefits for unlawful immigrants. Paul Carlos Southwick, the legal director for the ACLU of Idaho, is most concerned with how the bill will affect people with HIV.
“The impact on people living with HIV is perhaps the most severe immediate harm because without access to HIV medication, the health of our plaintiffs will begin to deteriorate immediately, and it eventually will become a public health concern”
The Attorney General’s office plans to respond in court after fully reviewing the lawsuit.
The law will prevent health care providers from supplying life-saving HIV medication to patients through the Federal Ryan White AIDS Drug Assistance Program. Federal law exempts program beneficiaries from verifying their citizenship or immigration status.
Abby Davids, a family physician in Boise, worries about her patients who have HIV.
“HIV is a very treatable condition. With medication, people can live normal lives without sickness, but without medication, it is universally fatal.”
The bill goes into effect July 1.
