Windy City Times: Office of LGBT Health closing?

via Windy City Times, by Sam Worley

Some members of the LGBT community are concerned that the Office of LGBT Health, a pioneering program administered by the Chicago Department of Public Health ( CDPH) , may be in danger of closing. The directorship of that office has been vacant since the mid-June departure of Simone Koehlinger (pictured), who took a position working on obesity issues for the Cook County Health Department.

"The community is concerned that this position might be eliminated," said Jim Pickett, who works for the AIDS Foundation of Chicago.

A CDPH spokesman released a statement to Windy City Times that stressed the department's commitment to the office. "The Office of LGBT Health is an important unit within the Chicago Department of Public Health," the statement read. "CDPH will continue to support this important program and will be seeking to fill the position."
Koehlinger, however, said that her worries about the office's future arise from the fact that it is funded by a cash-strapped city government. "Thankfully, we have an administration at the health department that supports this position," she said. "The concern comes in that the position is city-funded."

"I personally have not heard that specific concern voiced at CDPH," Public Health spokesman Tim Hadac e-mailed in response to those concerns. Mayor Richard Daley's office did not respond to a request for comment.

Programs that are not specifically grant-funded, Koehlinger said, are particularly unstable in the current economic climate. In the last few years, the office has not been immune to budget-cutting measures, she said, citing a public relations position that was eliminated, rather than filled, when the person who occupied the position left.

Read the rest.

Budget and Policy Challenges Loom in the Fight Against HIV/AIDS

On the very day Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius swears in new members of the President’s Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS (PACHA), AIDS advocates begin to grapple with the enormous challenges ahead in realizing President Barack Obama’s stated HIV-related goals without corresponding support for adequate HIV-related investments.

While President Barack Obama’s FY11 budget request to Congress, released on February 1, recommends nominal HIV/AIDS funding increases, none come close to matching levels needed to meet the president’s goals for the National HIV/AIDS Strategy. Read more reactions to the president’s budget proposal here.

With healthcare reform legislation stalled on Capitol Hill, advocates struggle for signs the president’s ambitious health and HIV agendas might be even remotely realized. Worse still, deepening budget cuts in states across the country threaten to roll back HIV-related prevention and care gains secured over the past 15 years.

AIDS advocates call on President Obama and congressional leaders to act quickly to approve the Senate-passed health reform bill with corresponding reconciliation legislation.

Send a message to Congress on health reform by clicking here.

Learn more about the president’s budget proposal and support advocacy to improve it here.

====

Illinoisans Go to the Polls: AFC urges all eligible voters to exercise their right to participate in the democratic process during today’s primary election.

Candidate Positions on AIDS: Read Illinois candidates’ responses to the HIV and public health survey here.

It's Election Time - Learn Where Illinois Candidates Stand on HIV and Public Health

The Illinois primary elections are coming up on February 2 - less than a week away.  While the airwaves are flooded with campaign ads, the candidates have said little until now about their views on critical public health issues, including HIV/AIDS.

Today, the AIDS Foundation of Chicago (AFC), the Illinois Association of Public Health Administrators and Illinois Public Health Association released a compilation of the views of 77 candidates on HIV and public health issues. All three groups are non-partisan organizations and do not endorse candidates for public office.

Surveys were sent to over 400 candidates running for federal senate and house seats, as well as state-level offices. Five statewide candidates—including two running for governor—submitted written statements on public health and HIV. Their statements are included in the full report.

Check out the questionnaire to see where candidates stand on HIV/AIDS programs and public health. Most importantly, get out and vote on Tuesday, February 2.

View a sample ballot and learn where to vote.

TEAM TO END AIDS opens registration TODAY

In a few months, TEAM TO END AIDS (T2) can train YOU to complete a marathon or triathlon, even if you’ve never trained before. And along the way, you will be raising funds to help the AIDS Foundation of Chicago prevent new HIV infections and improve the lives of people affected by the epidemic in the Chicago region and around the world.

Whether you’re a beginner or a veteran of endurance events, T2 will prepare you to go the distance and raise money to help fight AIDS. Simply choose your challenge – marathon, half marathon, or triathlon – and T2 staff will be with you each step of the way providing professional fundraising, training and nutritional support.

T2 offers comprehensive five-month marathon and three-month half marathon training programs. Experienced coaches will take you and your team from your first step to crossing the finish line.

In addition, T2 has partnered with TriMonster and Fitness Formula Clubs to provide a complete four-month triathlon training program, including full access membership to a participating Fitness Formula Club.
To register or get more information, visit: T2EA.com or call 312-725-T2EA (8232).

Follow T2 on Twitter.

Fan T2 on Facebook.

House Permits Needle Exchange Program Funding

The House voted Friday to lift a ban on using taxpayer dollars for needle exchange programs intended to prevent the spread of HIV and other diseases.

The vote to lift a longstanding ban on federal aid for such programs — in place since 1988 — came after a brief but passionate debate on an amendment by Rep. Mark Souder, R-Ind., to keep the ban in place. His amendment failed by a 211-218 vote.

See how your Representatives voted on the Souder Amendment here.

Rep. Mark Souder

Souder said HIV is spread chiefly through sexual activities and that needle exchange programs don't have a proven record of success (LL note: this is BS). According to Souder "providing needles acts as a way for drug users to sustain and support their intravenous drug use and does not address the primary illness of the drug addiction."

But Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard, D-Calif., said the scientific evidence is indisputable and that needle exchange programs put addicts into contact with social services agencies, opening the door for them to seek treatment.

"Needle exchange is not about promoting drug use," said moderate Democrat Alan Mollohan of West Virginia. "It is in fact about preventing disease."

The vote came as the House approved, by 264-153, a massive spending bill for health, labor and education programs for the upcoming budget year, cementing big spending increases for a wide swath of social programs.

Read the full article here.