Florida Gets $28.7 Million from CDC for HIV Prevention

Florida will use $28.7 million in federal HIV prevention funds “to reduce new infection, to increase the knowledge among those living with HIV, and to link those infected to care,” said state Department of Health (DOH) spokesperson Jessica Hammonds.

The CDC funding is part of nearly $339 million being directed to health departments in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and eight US territories. The awards are the first of five installments over five years. With the third-highest HIV rate in the country and the second-highest pediatric AIDS case rate, Florida is receiving nearly 9 percent of this year’s total.

Hammonds said some 20 percent of the 135,000 Floridians living with HIV do not know they are infected. Data show Fort Lauderdale and Miami in 2009 had the highest rates of AIDS cases of any US metropolitan area larger than 500,000 residents.

DOH will disperse some of the CDC money to county health departments where the need is greatest, said Hammonds. Broward and Miami-Dade counties topped the state for newly reported HIV/AIDS cases in 2011, followed by Orange and Palm Beach counties.

“[DOH] is delighted with the news of receiving these funds, and we are optimistic that they will help our efforts in Florida,” Hammonds added.

The Friends of AIDS Foundation is dedicated to enhancing the quality of life for HIV positive individuals and empowering people to make healthy choices to prevent the spread of the HIV virus. To learn more about The Friends of AIDS Foundation, please visit: http://www.friendsofaids.org.

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