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Housing Opportunities for People with AIDS (HOPWA)
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The Minority AIDS Initiative
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Labor-HHS, including The Ryan White Act and HIV Prevention and Surveillance
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Washington, D.C., Syringe Exchange, and
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Comprehensive sex education
Each of the letters was signed by between 32 and 67 Representatives with 108 different Representatives signing on to at least one letter. AIDS United appreciates the leadership taken to collect and submit the signatures and we thank every Representative who signed on.
Congress in Recess - Contact Your Representative!
Congress will be in recess for the next two weeks. Please consider taking this opportunity to schedule an appointment to meet with your Senators and Representatives while they are in town. To find out who your Representative is and to get her or his contact information, click here.
Additionally, many Senators and Representatives will be conducting town hall meetings while they are on recess. Here are just some of the town halls that we know of:
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4/3 Sen. Merkley (D-OR) - Lost River Junior and Senior High School, Merrill, OR
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4/10 Sen. Merkley (D-OR) - Milton-Freewater American Legion Hall, Milton-Freewater, OR
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3/31 Rep. Buerkle (R-NY) - West Genesee Senior High School, Camillus, NY
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4/1 Rep. Sensenbrenner Jr. (R-WI) - Hartland Village Hall, Hartland, WI
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4/3 Rep. Black (R-TN) - White House Heritage High School Theater, White House, TN
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4/3 Rep. Deutch (D-FL) - Coconut Creek Community Center, Coconut Creek, FL
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4/3 Rep. Huelskamp (R-KS) - The Flying Monkey, Elkhart, KS
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4/3 Rep. Murphy (R-PA) - Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall, Pittsburgh, PA
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4/12 Rep. Black (R-TN) - Putnam County Courthouse, Cookeville, TN
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5/15 Rep. Ross (D-AR) - Telephone Town Hall
If we learn of more, we will let you know! Contact your Representatives' and Senators' offices or check their websites to find out when they will be holding their next town hall. This is a great opportunity to meet with Members of Congress and express your concerns about HIV/AIDS issues, including whether or not there will be enough funding for prevention, treatment and research. We hope you will attend.
State of the South Task Force - Sign-on
The Southern HIV/AIDS Strategy Initiative (SASI) is circulating a sign-on Call to Action asking the White House, the Office of National AIDS Policy, and the Department of Health and Human Services to address the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the south with a State of the South Task Force. The Deep South has among the highest rates of HIV/AIDS infections in the country. To sign-on, email your organization's name to sasi@law.duke.edu by April 16th.
To view the sign-on letter, click here .
Health Care Conference Calls
An upcoming series of conference calls on the health care reform law will be hosted in March and April by the Health and Human Services (HHS) Partnership Center. The following sessions are available to the public; to sign up for a session use the links below.
Participants can submit questions to be answered during the call by emailing ACA101@hhs.gov.
Action Summit on Comprehensive Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights
The Center for Health and Gender Equity (CHANGE) will be hosting "A Healthy Future for Women and Girls Globally: Fourth Annual Action Summit on Comprehensive Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights" from May 6th - 8th. CHANGE is accepting applicants for this 3-day advocacy training in Washington, DC, for people living in Alaska, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, and Nevada. The summit is free for those accepted and all expenses will be covered by CHANGE. The deadline to apply is Sunday, April 1st, 2012. People living with HIV are strongly encouraged to apply.
For more information and to fill out an application, click here.
If you have any questions contact kkalkstein@genderhealth.org or 202-393-5930 ext. 14.
XIX International AIDS Conference - Deadline for Registration and Abstract Submissions
The XIX International AIDS Conference, to be held July 22-27 in Washington DC, will host an expected 200 countries, 2,000 journalists, and 25,000 participants to address this year's theme of "Turning the Tide Together." The conference is now open for late registration, and will open for late abstract submissions starting April 19th. The categories for abstract submissions are: Basic Science; Clinical Science; Epidemiology and Prevention Science; Social Science, Human Rights and Political Science; and Implementation Science, Health Systems and Economics.
Important Dates:
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Volunteer applications open April 1st 2012,
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Abstract submissions for late breakers open April 19th 2012,
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Registration late fee closes May 3rd, 2012,
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Abstract Submissions late breakers close May 22nd, 2012.
Learn more about the abstract submission categories.
Find out more information about registration.
Find other important deadlines.
July 24th HIV Mobilization Planned at International AIDS Conference
Large scale actions have traditionally taken place at each International AIDS Conference to draw public and media attention to HIV prevention, treatment and research. As the time for the International AIDS Conference in Washington D.C. approaches in late July, some local and national HIV groups have decided to continue this tradition by calling for a community mobilization around human rights and economic justice on July 24th.
More information about the mobilization can be found here.
AIDS United Hiring Regional Field Organizer
AIDS United seeks a Regional Field Organizer to work with its grantees, partners, and allies to implement a coordinated national organizing strategy. The Regional Field Organizer will help mobilize grassroots state and federal HIV/AIDS-related advocacy to achieve the goals of the National HIV/AIDS Strategy. The Regional Field Organizer will be located in Texas.
Learn more about the Regional Field Organizer position .
No Policy Update Next Week
AIDS United's Policy Update will take a short break next week while Congress is in recess. Our next issue will be on April 12th.
