Ohio AIDS activists organize to oppose funding cuts

AIDS activists in Ohio will gather on February 10 in Cleveland to publicly oppose an expected 25% cut in federal and state funding for programs providing treatment and support services to HIV-positive people in the state, the Cincinnati Enquirer reports. State health officials have warned AIDS service organizations that funding cuts were imminent and would be applied across the board. "I suspect there will be cuts in prevention as well as care," Victoria Brooks, CEO of AIDS Volunteers of Cincinnati, told the Enquirer. Cincinnati AIDS programs are expecting deep funding cuts. The city was informed in November that it no longer qualifies for some Ryan White Act Title II funds, which provide federal money for medical care and support services, including antiretroviral drugs offered to low-income HIV-positive people through the state's AIDS Drug Assistance Program. The loss in Ryan White funding came about because the region reported fewer than 500 new HIV cases during the past few years, which is the threshold for some federal grants, according to Jay Carey, director of public affairs for the state health department.