Funds for HIV/AIDS healthcare contracts reduced by L.A. County

LA Times
Abby Sewell
Original Article:  lat.ms/1zLNg2R

The move to cut $4 million from the contracts, paid for with federal money, marked the latest clash between the county and the nonprofit AIDS Healthcare Foundation, one of the largest providers of medical services to HIV patients in the region.

The foundation and the county have tangled politically and in court over other contracts and issues, including enforcement of requirements for adult film actors to use condoms and a foundation drive to create a breakaway public health department serving the city of Los Angeles.

Patients and foundation staff and supporters — including former L.A. City Councilman Bill Rosendahl — acknowledge that the number of patients relying on care provided under the federal Ryan White Program has decreased. But they say that about 24,000 county residents with HIV are not receiving any care.

Officials estimate that more than 10,000 people in the county are HIV-positive and don’t know it, and that an additional 13,000 are believed to be aware of their diagnoses but are not getting treatment.

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