Funding to combat HIV/AIDS in the city has been boosted by 10 percent as part of a new federal Ryan White grant announced today and health officials say they intend to focus on minorities and men.
The Boston Public Health Commission said the $14.3 million award will go to outreach to care for the city’s 15,000 people living with the disease.
“These funds will allow us to continue to make a positive impact on the lives of those living with HIV,” said Barbara Ferrer, executive director of the Boston Public Health Commission. “Through an increase in medical case management, nutrition services, and housing assistance, our clients will benefit from a whole health approach to managing their condition, as well as combating other chronic diseases.”
The grant will provide HIV health and support services to people from seven counties in Massachusetts and three counties in southern New Hampshire.
McKenzie Ridings, social media manager for the city’s public health commission, said the funds will be focused more so on helping manage care for those living with HIV/AIDS.
“It’s ensuring they receive the care they need,” said Ridings. “Those two groups are definitely people we want to get those services to.”
Male-to-male sex and injection drug use are the leading reported exposure risks for HIV infection among all people living with HIV/AIDS, accounting for 36 percent and 20 percent of all exposures, respectively, according to a Massachusetts Department of Public Health Office of HIV/AIDS report.
Male-to-male sex accounted for 41 percent of HIV diagnoses making it the leading reported exposure mode between 2009 and 2011, the report adds.
Kevin Cranston, director of the Bureau of Infectious Disease for the state Department of Public Health, said HIV/AIDS is always “a mixed bag of news” as the prevalence of the disease has risen due to new diagnoses but since 2000 the number of annual new infections has been reduced overall by 37 percent. In addition, people with HIV/AIDS are living longer.
“One of our first goals is to help those living with HIV/AIDS live longer healthier lives and prevent new infections … we’re proud of the gains we’ve made,” Cranston said.
But racial disparities are still an issue. Among women living with HIV/AIDS in Massachusetts, 45 percent are black and 27 percent are Hispanic, the report states.
With that in mind, Cranston added: “As pleased as we are with our work there’s still work to be done to address care and prevention among these groups.”
