Virginia just did something worth protecting. The 2026 budget includes nearly $15 million over two years so that Medicaid can actually cover gene therapy for people with sickle cell disease. For families who have watched a loved one go through crisis after crisis — emergency room visits, organ damage, a shortened life — this funding is the difference between a cure being theoretically possible and actually within reach.
Sickle cell disease hits Virginia families hard, and it has hit Black communities especially hard for generations. This is a disease that has often been underfunded and overlooked, even as the science finally caught up with a real treatment. Gene therapy can be transformative, but it costs more than most families could ever pay out of pocket. Virginia's decision to use the federal payment model for high-cost therapies — spreading out the cost and keeping care coordinated — was smart budgeting, not a blank check. It means kids and adults who've spent their lives managing pain could have a genuine shot at getting better.
I'm asking you to stand behind this funding and make sure it survives any future budget pressures or political headwinds. Do not let this $15 million get cut or quietly restructured out of existence. Virginia made a promise to some of its sickest residents, and I'm asking you to keep it.
Please publicly commit to protecting this Medicaid funding for sickle cell gene therapy — these families are counting on you.
