L.A. County Cuts Vital AIDS Medical Services
Despite Receiving $2.5 Million in Additional Ryan White CARE Act Funds for AIDS Services, County Bureaucrats Slash $600,000 in Funding that Provides Direct HIV/AIDS Medical Care—Including Lifesaving AIDS Drugs—to Some of L.A.'s Most Vulnerable Citizens
AHF Urges People to Call & Write L.A. County's Dr. Jonathan Fielding to Demand He Halts the Cuts
By: AIDS Healthcare Foundation
Los Angeles, CA - May 8, 2009
Advocates and patients from AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), the nation’s largest non-profit HIV/AIDS healthcare provider, will challenge officials from L.A. County’s Department of Public Health including Dr. Jonathan Fielding, Director of Public Health and Health Officer for the County, as well bureaucrats from the Office of AIDS Programs and Policies (OAPP) over their recent move to slash over $600,000 in funds for direct patient care services—including HIV/AIDS medical care and the provision of lifesaving antiretroviral AIDS drugs—to some of Los Angeles County’s most vulnerable residents living with HIV/AIDS. The move comes despite the fact that County bureaucrats recently received both federal stimulus money and over $2.5 million in additional Ryan White CARE Act funds—federal funding specifically intended for HIV/AIDS prevention, care and services. The Ryan White Act is the law that directs the federal government to fund the majority of domestic HIV/AIDS care and services.
“By slashing funding for vital AIDS medical care, the County is dismantling a crucial safety net for people with AIDS and risks having such patients fall out of care, become sicker, ultimately ending up in need of far more costly care,” said Michael Weinstein, President of AIDS Healthcare Foundation. “To cut direct health care services—including the provision of lifesaving AIDS drugs—to some of the County’s most vulnerable residents at the same time the County received $2.5 million more in additional funding from the Ryan White CARE is a textbook example of government bureaucrats taking foolishness to new heights. These cuts come at a time when fully half of all people living with HIV are not receiving treatment for their disease, and as a result, may be far more infectious and spread their infection to others. The intent of the Ryan White CARE Act is to help communities nationwide pay for and deliver HIV/AIDS medical care and services to people in need who have few resources. If these people cannot access care, they will literally have no place else to go.”
Official news of the cuts to AHF came in a letter from County health officials earlier this week. AHF plans administrative challenge to the cuts and is rallying HIV/AIDS patients, advocates and the public at large to press County officials to stop these cuts to vital AIDS medical care.
Action Alert: Call TODAY to Stop L.A. County Funding Cuts to Vital AIDS Medical Services!
Issue: L.A. County public health officials are about to dismantle an important health care safety-net for some of the County’s most vulnerable AIDS patients. The County is planning to slash more than $600,000 in funds for direct patient care services—including medical care and lifesaving AIDS drugs—despite having recently received more than $2.5 million in additional federal AIDS funding for such services.
You can help stop these harmful and unnecessary funding cuts by making a phone call or sending an email today to Dr. Jonathan Fielding, Director of Public Health for L.A. County:
Jonathan E. Fielding, M.D. M.P.H.
Director of Public Health and Health Officer
County of Los Angeles
jfielding@ph.lacounty.gov
Phone (213) 240-8117 Fax: (213) 975-1273
Please call Dr. Fielding at (213) 240-8117 TODAY and say:
“Don’t hurt AIDS patients. Please stop harmful funding cuts to AIDS medical services in L.A. County.”
