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1996 SESSION


HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 132
Continuing the Joint Subcommittee Studying Issues, Policies, and Programs Relating to Infection with Human Immunodeficiency Viruses as the Standing Subcommittee to Monitor the Issues Related to Infection with Human Immunodeficiency Viruses.

Agreed to by the House of Delegates, February 23, 1996
Agreed to by the Senate, February 21, 1996

WHEREAS, the joint subcommittee has been in existence since 1988 and, over the years, its members have developed considerable expertise and perspective concerning the AIDS epidemic; and

WHEREAS, the joint subcommittee's study, in its early years, was very productive and resulted in the development and implementation of sound, reasonable HIV policy in Virginia; and

WHEREAS, although the controversy is not as strident as it was in the 1980s and numerous helpful treatments have been discovered, many experts believe that any cure or vaccine is still years in the future, and community activists note that the HIV epidemic has continued to change while creating new issues; and

WHEREAS, over the years, the joint subcommittee has considered such difficult issues as: testing of sexual offenders, training of public safety personnel, deemed consent to testing for health care providers, good Samaritans, public school attendance, higher education programs, premium assistance programs, Medicaid waivers, isolation procedures for persons engaging in at-risk behavior, anonymous testing sites, multiple drug-resistant tuberculosis, corrections policies, testing of prostitutes, prenatal care protocols, and testing of gamete donors; and

WHEREAS, if the joint subcommittee had not been available to examine these issues and consider testimony from the Commonwealth's experts and citizens, many of these issues may not have been resolved with equity and dignity; and

WHEREAS, at this time, many factors are converging; for example, Congress is revising the Ryan White CARE Act and may be sending the millions of dollars known as the Medicaid program back to the states for restructuring, while, at the same time, the numbers of infected young people and women continue to increase; prison and other institutional populations of HIV-infected individuals are growing; and treatment modalities and drugs for AIDS patients continue to emerge and evolve; and

WHEREAS, the joint subcommittee believes that, now more than ever, a mechanism for rapid response to the continued increasing costs of the HIV epidemic and the potential for crises issues or heated controversies must be in place; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the Joint Subcommittee Studying Issues, Policies, and Programs Relating to Infection with Human Immunodeficiency Viruses be continued as the Standing Subcommittee to Monitor the Issues Related to Infection with Human Immunodeficiency Viruses. The current membership of the joint subcommittee, including the ex officio membership, shall continue to serve. Any vacancies shall be filled by the Speaker of the House, and the Senate Committee on Privileges and Elections, as appropriate in accordance with the provisions of House Joint Resolution No. 31 (1988) and Senate Joint Resolution No. 28 (1988), except that the Speaker of the House shall appoint, to any such vacancy, the attorney for the Commonwealth and the citizen member who is a physician with expertise in the care and treatment of persons with infectious diseases, particularly the treatment of persons living with AIDS, and the Senate Committee on Privileges and Elections shall appoint, to any such vacancy, the HIV-infected citizen or person living with AIDS and the citizen member who is an expert in medical ethics.

The standing subcommittee shall be continued, as herein provided, for two years to January 1, 1998. The standing subcommittee shall be authorized to hold one meeting in each of the two years to consider the issues and make any recommendations that may be necessary. If determined necessary and appropriate, the standing subcommittee may also report its findings and recommendations to the Governor and the 1998 Session of the General Assembly in accordance with the procedures of the Division of Legislative Automated Systems for the processing of legislative documents.

The direct costs of this study shall not exceed $2,050 per year.

Implementation of this resolution is subject to subsequent approval and certification by the Joint Rules Committee. The Committee may withhold expenditures or delay the period for the conduct of the study.