AS RECENTLY as 2001, the state was spending $51 million a year to prevent HIV/AIDS and provide services to those suffering from the disease. Spending plummeted, however, during the budget crisis in the early years of this decade, and Governor Patrick is asking for only $37.1 million in his new budget - just $200,000 more than is being spent this year. To reduce the spread of the disease, especially in the minority communities where it is taking its greatest toll, the Legislature should add substantially to the state's HIV/AIDS programs.
More prevention education and outreach could cut down on the nearly 1,000 new cases of HIV infection each year in Massachusetts. Efforts to head off new infections are complicated by the fact that, of the 22,000 people believed to be HIV-positive, an estimated 5,000 to 7,000 don't know their status. So members of the anti-AIDS coalition Project ABLE would like to see the state invest more in rapid testing at clinics and other community settings, with counseling and referral follow-up part of the service.
Project ABLE is also calling for more funding for programs that assist infected individuals in disclosing their condition to their sex and drug-using partners. Such programs also include referrals for the partners to testing, treatment, and preventive services. The coalition would like the Legislature to boost funding enough to make sure that the county houses of correction have the full array of HIV/AIDS services, as well as programs to reintegrate HIV-infected inmates as they return to the community.
Much of the focus of AIDS prevention must be on black and Hispanic communities, which are increasingly bearing the brunt of the disease. Each group is just 6 percent of the state population, but more than 28 percent of people living with HIV/AIDS are black, and 25 percent are Hispanic. Among gay and bisexual men between the ages of 13 and 24 diagnosed with HIV between 2004 and 2006, 53 percent were black or Hispanic.
Project ABLE is also seeking more money for state-supported services, from meals to transportation, that help those with the disease cope with it and live independently. The demand for such services increases each year with the growth in the number of patients living with HIV/AIDS and benefiting from AIDS medications.
In December, the HIV/AIDS Bureau of the state Department of Public Health published a well-documented report on the heavy impact of HIV/AIDS on communities of color. Its recommendations are similar to ones made by Project ABLE and are replete with words like "expand" and "increase." The Legislature should ensure the bureau has the resources it needs to reduce the disparity and prevent further transmission of the disease.
