Membership » Overview

CAEAR Coalition: The United Voice for the Ryan White Program

The Communities Advocating Emergency AIDS Relief (CAEAR) Coalition is a national membership organization which advocates for federal policy, legislation, regulations, and appropriations to meet the care, treatment, support, and prevention needs of people living with HIV/AIDS and the organizations that serve them, focusing on health care reform and the evolving role of the Ryan White Program.

The CAEAR Coalition is the oldest national HIV/AIDS organization representing the interests of people living with HIV/AIDS, community-based service providers, and the public health grantees of the Ryan White Care Act. CAEAR targets its advocacy on behalf of the Part A eligible metropolitan areas and the community health centers directly funded through Ryan White Part C.

Fighting for Increased Appropriations in the Face of Rising Caseloads

During each federal funding cycle, the CAEAR Coalition advocates on behalf of people living with HIV/AIDS for adequate federal funding for the Ryan White Program. Over the last 25 years, CAEAR Coalition has been instrumental in securing appropriation increases. It has helped to increase Part A appropriations from $88 million to over $655 million and Part C appropriations from $76 million to over $205 million.

Through re-granting of Ryan White funds from Part A grantees and direct funding for Part C agencies, the Ryan White Program provides monetary awards to over 5,000 AIDS Services Organizations (ASOs) in all 50 states. CAEAR Coalition has successfully lobbied to add service categories to ensure comprehensive care for people living with HIV/AIDS, making the Ryan White Program unique among federal disease-specific funding programs.

2022 CAEAR Coalition Priorities

• Support federal policy, legislation, regulations, and appropriations to meet the care, treatment, support, and prevention needs of people living with HIV/AIDS and the organizations that serve them, including:
  
  • advocate for increasing Ryan White Program funding levels by organizing grassroots efforts and educating members of Congress about the program’s proven success in providing high-quality, cost-effective HIV service delivery models with successful health outcomes.
  • promote the implementation of the End the HIV Epidemic Initiative, including the rapid expansion of funding of the initiative to include all Ryan White jurisdictions and to ensure that services are targeted to eliminate health outcome disparities in difference populations.
  • tap the expertise of the Arent Fox Government Affairs Team – Jon Bouker, Partner, and Oliver Spurgeon, Senior Government Relations Director – to provide on-going education to the CAEAR Coalition membership on current HIV-related policies to develop and implement effective real-time advocacy strategies and policy recommendations.
  • host quarterly policy calls with Arent Fox to keep CAEAR Coalition members informed.

• Develop a strategic partnership with the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) to work together on critical issues, including:
  • identify and address COVID-19’s impact on the delivery of Ryan White Program services and the implementation of the Ending the HIV Epidemic initiative.
  • share best practices and identify technical assistance needs for both the Ryan White Program and the Ending the HIV Epidemic initiative.
  • facilitate communication and collaboration among Ryan White Program staff and county and city health departments.
  • host and staff the newly formed Ryan White Part A Community of Practice.
• Track 340B Program developments and advocate accordingly.
• Meet quarterly with HRSA-HAB leadership to ensure clear communication and to highlight issues and community concerns. Use these calls to identify emerging issues, responses, and solutions.
• Convene quarterly calls for members of Ryan White Planning Councils and HRSA-HAB leadership to provide a venue to share and address concerns.

A Leader in Ryan White Reauthorization and Health Care Reform

• Membership-driven development of policy recommendations
• Comprehensive analysis of Ryan White funding
• Convening of national partners to form the Ryan White Legislative Group to build a unified voice on the Hill for reauthorization
• Development of reauthorization bill language
  Engagement of key Hill staff
• Detailed response to draft legislation
• Constituent visits to key members of Congress
• Advocacy to ensure provisions are enacted fairly and with a minimum disruption to care

Member Benefits

• Professional government affairs representation in Washington
• A seat at the table when priorities for Ryan White Program advocacy are set
• Participation in quarterly Capitol Hill advocacy visits with members of Congress
• Meetings with Administration officials at the White House, Department of Health &
  Human Services (HHS), and Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)
• Up-to-date Ryan White Program information through action alerts and updates
• Representation of Ryan White Program interests in other HIV/AIDS coalitions such as the Federal AIDS Policy Partnership
• The opportunity to network and receive peer TA from counterparts across the country

Member Categories

Annual Dues