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After NYC rescinds Section 8 vouchers, the neediest suffer
Patricia Argilagos received a Section 8 voucher in February 2009. Although there’s a long waitlist, Argilagos received domestic violence priority, because she was living with an abusive partner. When her abuser pushed her out of her apartment window later that month, she was hospitalized with serious injuries: A broken back, broken legs, and broken arm. Because she was in the hospital and had difficulty moving, she missed the deadline to find a new apartment with her Section 8 voucher. Her friend found her an apartment, but the process was stymied by bureaucratic delays. And by then it was too late. In December 2009, because of budget cuts the Bloomberg administration rescinded her voucher, and that of 3,000 other people given Section 8 vouchers. These vouchers were of the neediest cases: People who have recently been homeless, are relocating due to domestic violence, or are youth aging out of foster care.…
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Action Alert: Tell Congress to Pass Healthcare Reform and Include ETHA!
The vote for health care reform is happening this week, and it is still possible for the Early Treatment for HIV Act (ETHA) to be included in the final bill. Ask your member of the House of Representatives to pass health care reform and make ETHA a priority! ETHA would add HIV coverage to Medicaid rather than forcing people to wait until they are diagnosed with AIDS to get care. According to an analysis when ETHA was first introduced, ETHA would reduce the death rate for persons living with HIV on Medicaid by fifty percent; Slow disease progression and improve health outcomes, with 35,000 more individuals with CD4 counts above 500 under ETHA than under baseline Medicaid, and decrease federal Medicaid spending by nearly $32 million. Call your rep and say, “My name is _____ and I’m a constituent from (city/state). I’m calling to ask you to vote to pass… -
City Council Grills HRA Commissioner on illegal HASA cuts
On Tuesday City Council members ripped into Human Resources Administration Commissioner Robert Doar for Mayor Bloomberg’s deep proposed cuts to the HIV/AIDS Services Administration. General Welfare Chair Annabel Palma declared fighting the cut to 248 HASA case managers— 28 percent of the total—her top priority, and held a press conference with advocates before the hearing. In addition to Palma, council member Charles Barron was one of Doar’s harshest critics. When Doar remarked he was “proud” of his department, Barron responded. “We’re not looking for you being proud. Some people say we’re cutting to the bone. But this is cutting to the marrow. I know people don’t like to deal with race, but race still matters. And the people who struggle most are poor families of color and we want to make sure the budget’s not balanced on their backs if there are alternatives.” Bloomberg’s cut is a clear violation of…
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The AIDS Issues Update is written by Diana Scholl. Send thoughts and story tips to Diana at d.scholl@housingworks.org.
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