The Budget and Beyond – An Editorial by Ravinia Hayes-Cozier
February 3, 2010
The Budget and Beyond – A Call
to Action for the HIV/AIDS Community and Government Officials
What we need beyond increased funding to end HIV/AIDS
in the U.S.
An editorial by Ravinia Hayes-Cozier, Director of
Government Relations and Public Policy at the National Minority AIDS
Council
February 3, 2010 ~ Washington, DC
~ While we applaud the President’s request to increase HIV/AIDS
funding by $40 million (1.7%) in the FY2011 budget, I am concerned that this
number falls short after the 8 years of flat-funding under the previous
Administration. Sometimes we count our blessings no matter how small they are,
but we should never turn a blind eye to fully funding what is needed to care and
treat and prevent HIV/AIDS. The budget, the framework of how we spend resources,
impacts the major federal agencies that oversee HIV/AIDS programming in the U.S.
As HIV/AIDS advocates, we must hold government officials accountable during the
appropriations process: it is imperative that AIDS dollars are disbursed in a
manner that reflects the impact of the epidemic.
This means ensuring that
communities hardest hit by the AIDS epidemic receive the funding they need. In
2008, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that HIV
incidence was 40% higher than previously estimated, with over 55,500 new HIV
cases occurring in the U.S. annually. Of these cases, 70% were in communities of
color. African Americans alone accounted for just under half of all new HIV
infections, followed by Latinos, who showed a significant increase in HIV
incidence at 18%. Incidence rates among Asian and Pacific Islander and Native
American/Alaska Native communities showed dramatic increases as well.
The AIDS community – and
federal agencies – must look beyond HIV funding when it comes to mitigating
HIV/AIDS in the U.S. We must address the socio-economic determinants that have
undermined the overall health and welfare of communities heavily impacted by
AIDS: lack of affordable housing; limited access to education and health care;
and high rates of malnutrition, substance use, incarceration and poverty. These
determinants have helped lay the foundation for HIV/AIDS in minority communities
and must be addressed through the allocation of appropriate resources – and the
will of the AIDS community.
I believe that re-investment
in America’s health infrastructure through health reform and increased HIV/AIDS
funding will lead us into an era where sound public policy, evidence-based
health and HIV/AIDS programming; and community meet and produce great
outcomes.
