San Francisco: 3TC Available Now to Residents through ADAP Program

In San Francisco the Mayor's HIV Planning Council found money unspent on other AIDS programs and used it to cover lamivudine (Epivir(TM), 3TC) under the ADAP program (AIDS Drug Assistance Program, for persons with limited income). The money, $900,000, should last for the several months which it is likely to take for California to add the drug to the statewide ADAP formulary. 3TC was added to the ADAP formulary for San Francisco residents on April 1. (The unspent money totaled $1.5 million; besides the $900,000, $285,000 was allocated to vouchers for food, clothing, taxis, and household necessities, and the remainder went to food programs.)

Despite early reports to the contrary, San Francisco residents DO NOT need to already be in the ADAP program to be eligible for Epivir. They can join the AIDS Drug Assistance Program now. They must be San Francisco residents, be HIV positive, and qualify under fairly generous income limits. Also, initial reports that only the tablets are covered were erroneous; the oral solution, which is mainly for pediatric use and also for adults who need to use doses lower than usual, is covered by this program as well.