According to a new study by the AIDS Taskforce of Greater Cleveland, AIDS service organizations across the United States are suffering from “signs of financial and operational vulnerability” due to such issues as massive federal budget cuts and overwhelming caseloads.
The study was detailed in an AIDS Task Force teleconference yesterday, November 28, sponsored by Funders Concerned About AIDS. The report revealed that between 2001 and 2005, most organizations in the U.S. experienced increased financial difficulties each year, with 91 percent reporting a loss for at least one year during that period. ASOs located in the southern U.S. reported the greatest financial troubles, while roughly 71 percent of ASOs were forced to eliminate or restrict programs during that period.
“It’s clear that many, many ASOs across the U.S. have done an extraordinary job in mobilizing professional and volunteer talents to provide services and prevent new infections,” says AIDS Taskforce’s Executive Director Earl Pike. “But we also have to stop thinking about what we do in the context of a ‘state of emergency,’ and start thinking about the long haul.”
Beth Benne, RN, is HIV negative, but
the virus has impacted her life. She currently supervises a biannual HIV/AIDS awareness week as
the director of the student health center at Pierce College, a
community commuter school in Woodland Hills, California.
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Overheard in the Women's Forum
"I recently met a guy who is negative. I did tell him about my status and he decided to kiss me anyway (we didn't go further than that). But a day later, he called and said that he actually had a mouth ulcer that time when we kissed and he was very worried. Asked if he can get the virus from me that way. For that moment, I felt so insulted and yet I felt so bad. It was my first time having a contact with a "negative" guy."
