For Immediate Release
Media Contact:
Justin Burke - 213.201.1525
EMAIL:jburke@apla.org
BUSH BUDGET PROPOSAL CURBS U.S. AIDS PROGRAMS FOR 2006, OTHERS CUT
Los Angeles, CA, February 7, 2005– AIDS Project Los Angeles today said that President Bush’s 2006 proposed budget, released this morning, fails to deliver sufficient funding for the HIV/AIDS programs he highlighted in his State of the Union address last week.
“The president asked Congress to reauthorize the Ryan White CARE Act to encourage prevention, care and treatment for HIV/AIDS,” said APLA Executive Director Craig E. Thompson. “This morning he all but flat-funded the very same program, and cut other funding for people living with HIV/AIDS.”
The president’s budget proposes $2.1 billion for Ryan White, the largest source of dedicated federal funding for HIV/AIDS. Most Ryan White CARE Act programs have been flat-funded for five years; the AIDS Drug Assistance Program (ADAP) received a modest $10 million increase nationwide. ADAP provides free life-saving drug therapies to low-income uninsured and underinsured Americans living with HIV/AIDS. Advocates across the country estimate that ADAP needs an increase of $217 million to keep pace with increased drug prices and growing demand.
Los Angeles County received $36.6 million in CARE Act funds in 2004, a decrease of $3 million from the year before.
“In his State of the Union speech, the president asked us to focus resources on African American communities, where HIV infection rates are on the rise,” said Thompson. “Today is National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. We’re pleased that the president has called attention to this crisis. Now we ask him for the resources to end it.”
The president’s budget also proposes $14 million in cuts to HOPWA (Housing Opportunities for People Living with HIV/AIDS). HOPWA provides housing subsidies for people living with HIV/AIDS.
“Los Angeles is undergoing a crisis in affordable housing for everybody, including low-income people with HIV/AIDS,” Thompson said. “The president’s budget takes HOPWA funding back to pre 2001 levels, despite growing demand. These kinds of cuts undermine our ability to provide people with HIV/AIDS safe and stable housing, which is essential to managing HIV disease.”
AIDS Project Los Angeles, one of the largest non-profit AIDS service organizations in the United States, provides bilingual direct services, prevention education and leadership on HIV/AIDS-related policy and legislation. Founded by four friends in 1982, APLA is a community-based, volunteer-supported organization with local, national and global reach. For more information, visit www.apla.org.
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