HIV disease management: new technologies improve outcomes and contain costs

HIV disease presents a continuous learning curve as we move from managing a fatal illness to treating a chronic disease. Even though the HIV epidemic is more than 20 years old, our understanding of the disease and its management are constantly evolving. New technologies are an important part of this learning curve. As they are introduced, providers and managed care organizations need to develop policies and procedures that reflect the state of the art in HIV care to continue to build on the good outcomes seen since the advent of HAART. While this model of care is "expensive," it is less expensive long-term than the poorer outcomes and costs associated with increased hospitalization, drug resistance, and preventable morbidity in HIV disease.