HIV Prevention Failure In Florida

Equality Florida has disclosed that Senator Rick Scott rejected $70 million in critically needed federal funds to address HIV in Florida while he was Governor according to an investigative report by The Guardian. After years of decline Florida’s number of HIV diagnoses reversed course & increased during the time that then Governor Scott’s administration actively refused federal funds for HIV prevention & blocked grants for local governments to take action. Alejandro Acosta Equality Florida HIV Advocacy Project Director stated, “This is outrageous & irresponsible. This reporting indicates that Senator Scott purposefully worked against public health, directly endangering Floridians & keeping Florida among the highest states for HIV transmissions in the nation. We cannot afford silence when it comes to HIV. Florida should be using every tool at its disposal to combat its HIV epidemic, both through the state budget & state policy.” These admission come as the Trump Administration has proposed its “Ending the HIV Epidemic” plan, which aims for a reduction of new transmissions by 90% in 10 years. The hotspots of transmissions are mostly in the South & Florida has 7 of the 48 identified counties with the newest cases in the country. Equality Florida is the largest civil rights organization dedicated to securing full equality for Florida’s LGBTQ community. Through education, grassroots organizing, coalition building & lobbying they are changing Florida so that no one suffers harassment or discrimination on the basis of their sexual orientation or gender identity.
For More Info: eqfl.org
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