ADAP in North Carolina — AIDS Drug Assistance Program eligibility and enrollment
The number
North Carolina AIDS Drug Assistance Program (NC-ADAP) supports 7,800 people living with HIV in North Carolina, with an income cap at 300% of the federal poverty line.
Ryan White Part B
North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, Communicable Disease Branch
State ADAP
North Carolina AIDS Drug Assistance Program (NC-ADAP)
Income cap 300% FPL
State PrEP-DAP
Not operated; federal Ready Set PrEP applies
North Carolina AIDS Drug Assistance Program (NC-ADAP) eligibility + enrollment
North Carolina AIDS Drug Assistance Program (NC-ADAP) serves 7,800 people, with an income eligibility cap at 300% of the federal poverty line. In North Carolina that means your gross annual income can be up to $45,753 for a household of one (at 2025 HHS poverty guidelines) and you still qualify. ADAP is the 'payer of last resort' for HIV medications: it covers people with no insurance, fills the gap for people on Medicare Part D, and pays co-pays for people on commercial insurance.
What ADAP covers: all FDA-approved antiretroviral medications on the state formulary (every ADAP covers the WHO-recommended first-line regimens), plus many opportunistic-infection prophylaxis drugs, lab work in states where the ADAP pays for labs directly, and in some states hepatitis B and C treatment. North Carolina AIDS Drug Assistance Program (NC-ADAP)'s formulary is published on the state health department website and is updated at least annually.
How to enroll: a case manager at a Ryan White Part B or Part C clinic completes the application with you. You'll need proof of HIV diagnosis (a lab report or physician letter), proof of North Carolina residency, proof of income (pay stubs, tax return, benefit letter), and documentation of insurance status. Decisions typically return within two weeks; medications are dispensed through participating pharmacies at no cost once you're enrolled. Recertification is annual.
The state HIV info line is 1-919-733-7301; the case-management team can match you to the nearest Ryan White clinic for same-week intake. Long-time Black residents name UNC Infectious Diseases Clinic and RAIN (Regional AIDS Interfaith Network) as the local institutions that show up consistently — both are listed below.
UNC Infectious Diseases Clinic. The UNC Infectious Diseases Clinic in Chapel Hill is the Ryan White Part C grantee for central North Carolina, serving about 2,400 people living with HIV; UNC is the training home for the NC AIDS Training and Education Center, which certifies HIV primary-care providers across the state.
RAIN (Regional AIDS Interfaith Network). RAIN in Charlotte is a Ryan White Part B case-management contractor for the western half of North Carolina and operates the state's only faith-community-partnered HIV program, serving roughly 1,200 clients across Mecklenburg, Gaston, Union, and Iredell counties.
For Black families in North Carolina
The South carries the heaviest HIV burden in the country: Black Southern residents make up roughly 14% of the U.S. population but account for more than half of new Black HIV diagnoses nationally. Of the 36,500 people living with HIV in North Carolina, a disproportionate share are Black residents — 61% of the new diagnoses each year, same proportion or higher of the cumulative prevalence. ADAP is what keeps many of those residents virally suppressed, because the alternative — paying retail for daily antiretrovirals — would run roughly $30,000-$40,000 a year. If your income has you worried about whether you qualify, call the state HIV line first. Ryan White case managers know the eligibility rules better than most insurance navigators and will pull you through the application rather than bouncing you to paperwork.
Named HIV testing + PrEP sites in North Carolina
UNC Infectious Diseases Clinic
Chapel Hill, NC • 1-919-966-4000
RAIN — Regional AIDS Interfaith Network Charlotte
Charlotte, NC • 1-704-372-7246
Rosedale Health & Wellness Center — Charlotte
Charlotte, NC • 1-704-948-8582
Alliance of AIDS Services Carolina — Raleigh
Raleigh, NC • 1-919-834-2437
Southerners on New Ground (SONG) Health Testing Events — Durham
Raleigh, NC • 1-404-549-8645
Winston-Salem State University — North Carolina AIDS Education & Training Center
Winston-Salem, NC • 1-336-716-2011
Guilford County Division of Public Health — Sexual Health Clinic
Greensboro, NC • 1-336-641-3245
Where to get help in North Carolina
- North Carolina HIV info line: 1-919-733-7301 — staff can find the nearest free testing site, schedule PrEP, or help enroll you in ADAP.
- North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, Communicable Disease Branch landing page: https://epi.dph.ncdhhs.gov/cd/hiv.html.
- Federally Qualified Health Centers in North Carolina: every FQHC offers sliding-scale HIV testing and has certified application counselors on staff. See our FQHC directory for the state at /clinics/nc/.
- State health data for North Carolina: for state-level HIV mortality, maternal health, and life-expectancy context by race, see /health/north-carolina/.
- North Carolina Medicaid: Medicaid is the largest single payer of HIV care in most states. See /medicaid/north-carolina/ for eligibility + enrollment.
- NASTAD ADAP Monitoring Project: nastad.org/adap-monitoring-project — the current national ADAP eligibility + formulary reference.
References & primary sources
- North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, Communicable Disease Branch: https://epi.dph.ncdhhs.gov/cd/hiv.html.
- CDC HIV Surveillance Report 2022: cdc.gov/hiv/library/reports/hiv-surveillance.html. Source for state-level new diagnoses and race-stratified counts.
- HRSA HIV/AIDS Bureau, Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program grantee list: ryanwhite.hrsa.gov/grants/part-b.
- NASTAD ADAP Monitoring Project 2024 Annual Report: nastad.org/adap-monitoring-project. Source for ADAP income cap + enrollment + PrEP-DAP data.
- AIDSVu state profile: aidsvu.org/state/north-carolina/.
- Kaiser Family Foundation, The Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program fact sheet: kff.org/global-health-policy/fact-sheet/the-ryan-white-hivaids-program.
Data refreshed: