June 20, 2008 |
Contacts:
Noel Alicea, 212.367.1216
Krishna Stone, 212.367.1016
|
GMHC APPLAUDS LEGISLATURE FOR PASSAGE OF HIV EDUCATION BILL FOR INMATES RETURNING TO THEIR COMMUNITIES
Albany, NY/June 19, 2008 — Today, the New York State Senate unanimously advanced a measure which will require correctional facilities to provide educational information about HIV prevention and testing to inmates upon their release. The bill, sponsored by Senator Velmanette Montgomery (D-Brooklyn) and Assemblymember Crystal Peoples (D-Buffalo), calls for inmates to receive referrals to their local community-based service providers for HIV testing and counseling.
The bill passed the State Assembly unanimously earlier in the week.
"We thank Senator Montgomery and Assemblymember Peoples for their leadership on this important issue," said Marjorie J. Hill, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer of Gay Men's Health Crisis. "Incarceration is a contributing factor in the spread of HIV. We must do more to encourage HIV testing in this state. The important link this legislation makes between individuals at-risk or already infected with HIV to life-saving education about the disease and referrals to community organizations fighting it, is a tremendous public health service."
Of the 63,000 inmates currently incarcerated throughout the state, approximately eight percent are thought to be HIV-positive, a rate far greater than the general population. Additionally, stigma surrounding HIV infection is prevalent in prisons, discouraging inmates from seeking testing and care. This bill will help inmates immediately upon release. GMHC urges Governor Paterson to sign this bill into law.
GMHC is encouraged by the direction New York is taking in finding the one in four residents who have HIV but are unaware of their status. Another important measure pending in the Legislature this session is a bill drafted by New York State Department of Health Commissioner Richard Daines, in collaboration with the Assembly and Senate Health Committee Chairmen and the New York City Commissioner of Health, which requires the offering of an HIV test to adults as a part of their routine medical care. This bill has been introduced in the Assembly by Assemblymember Richard Gottfried (D-Manhattan).
"New York is showing remarkable potential for real change in its efforts to increase HIV testing," continued Dr. Hill. "The Montgomery/Peoples bill and the Gottfried/Daines universal offering bill represent a real change in the way we perform and think about HIV testing in this state. This common sense approach which stresses education and prevention will arm individuals with the knowledge they need to stay healthy and protect their loved ones."
"As with the Montgomery/Peoples bill, GMHC believes that both houses of the legislature should not leave Albany before passing the Gottfried/Daines testing bill," said Dr. Hill.
* * *
About Gay Men's Health Crisis
Gay Men's Health Crisis (GMHC) is a not-for-profit, volunteer-supported and community-based organization committed to national leadership in the fight against AIDS. We provide services and programs to over 15,000 men, women and families that are living with or affected by HIV/AIDS in New York City, and outreach and education to hundreds of thousands throughout the world.
© 2008 Gay Men's Health Crisis
|
home 
