California
Slashes HIV/AIDS Prevention Funding in New Budget

In California's latest budget, signed Tuesday by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, funding for HIV/AIDS prevention services was cut by $5 million. Although two programs described as vital by state HIV/AIDS activists -- the AIDS Drug Assistance Program and the Therapeutic Monitoring Program -- were spared cuts, the overall trend was downward.

"We're gratified that vital drug and monitoring programs have been preserved, but the commitment to support people with HIV/AIDS must be sustained over time," Craig E. Thompson, executive director of AIDS Project Los Angeles, said in a statement. "The number of Californians with HIV increases every year, yet funding is heading in the opposite direction. We cannot win the war against this disease if the government keeps whittling away at our resources."

At a time when the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently increased its estimate of annual new HIV infections by 40%, prevention programs shouldn't be cut back, Thompson added: "Slashing prevention programs at a time of rising HIV rates is bad policy. This is terrible news for young adults, gay men, and men and women of color who are at heightened risk for HIV in California and across the nation."

In addition to cuts in prevention funding, the new California budget includes less money for HIV/AIDS-related housing assistance, early intervention, and counseling and testing programs. It also eliminates outright a program providing mental health services to people living with HIV. (The Advocate)