SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. /California Newswire/ — Today San Francisco Mayor Edwin M. Lee joined by Supervisors Scott Wiener, David Campos and Christina Olague announced the introduction at the Board of Supervisors a $1.8 million budget supplemental for HIV/AIDS care and treatment funding to protect essential services to the City’s most vulnerable despite severe budget shortfalls.
“Building upon the tremendous leadership of Leader Pelosi in Congress on the reauthorization of the Ryan White Care Act, San Francisco will continue to sustain investments in HIV/AIDS care and treatment,” said Mayor Lee. “Despite continued historic budget challenges, we remain committed to funding critical care services for those living with HIV/AIDS in San Francisco.”
“For several years, I worked successfully in a bipartisan way to roll back these destabilizing cuts and their potentially devastating impacts, restoring nearly $21 million to San Francisco’s systems of care since 2007,” said Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi. “Today, again San Francisco leads the way for compassionate, community-based care for people with HIV/AIDS with this supplemental budget appropriation from Mayor Lee.”
“Leader Pelosi is a hero to our community for tirelessly working over the past quarter century to ensure strong funding for HIV/AIDS services. Now it’s San Francisco’s turn to step up and ensure continued funding for those living with or at risk for HIV,” said Supervisor Wiener. “I am committed to keeping these services intact. It is a top priority for me.”
“We are grateful for Leader Pelosi’s leadership all these years. Following on her footsteps, this supplemental will literally save lives, for it will ensure that basic HIV/AIDS services are provided to the most vulnerable in our community,” said Supervisor Campos.
“The Mayor and Supervisors Campos and Wiener’s joint request for a supplemental appropriation ensures the continuation of vital primary care and supportive services, which are essential to the health of individuals living with HIV/AIDS,” said San Francisco HIV/AIDS Provider Network (HAPN) Vice-President Brett Andrews. “San Francisco has provided leadership to the entire country with an effective model of care to respond to the AIDS crisis. San Francisco relies on, and will continue to benefit from the leadership and cooperation of the Mayor and the Board reflected here today.”
The $1.8 million in funding was eliminated by Congress in its most recent budget bill. This supplemental funding restoration will maintain primary care services and critical support services for San Franciscans living with HIV/AIDS, including hospice, treatment adherence, case management and housing through the end of the fiscal year. Maintaining these services is critical because San Francisco’s aging population living with HIV/AIDS is creating more complex conditions due to accelerated aging co-morbidity. In addition, over half the people living with HIV/AIDS in San Francisco do not have private health insurance.
The funding restorations are from the City’s Reserve for State Budget Impacts which were previously appropriated, but were not needed.
