mgreen@floridaidsaction.org

FLORIDA AIDS ACTION JOINS STATE SENATORS
WILSON AND MARGOLIS TO SOUND ALARM OVER STATE BUDGET

Miami, FL - Florida AIDS Action's (FLAA) Director of Government Affairs and Advocacy will join State Senators Frederica Wilson (D-Miami) and Gwen Margolis (D-Miami Beach) for a press conference addressing the Florida Legislature's 2003-2004 Budget at 12:00 noon this Thursday, April 17th, in the Miami-Dade County Commission Chambers, 111 NW 1st Street, Miami.

In a year marked by a slowing economy, rising unemployment rates and war, the two Florida State Senators hope to draw crowds to the press conference in an effort to bring attention to the impact insufficient state funding will have on Floridians.

According to staff for both Senator Wilson and Margolis, the two elected officials will address the adverse effects of reduced funding on:

§ The elderly
§ The medically needy program
§ The educational system
§ People with disabilities
§ The working poor

Additionally, FLAA's Director of Government Affairs and Advocacy, Jesse Fry, will discuss the harmful impact insufficient funding will have on Florida's HIV/AIDS community. "People living with AIDS are going to face a predicament and be forced to access other AIDS programs that are already in crisis or, worse, decide to forego medications entirely to avoid poverty." Fry continues, "Insufficient funding of programs such as the Medically Needy program will likely result in more sickly AIDS patients as individuals with no health coverage wait to access healthcare until things are so serious they require extensive and expensive treatment in hospitals." Fry adds, "When hospitals provide care on an uncompensated basis, they raise rates for all Floridians, driving up health insurance premiums. Thus, our efforts to save a little money now will cost us more later in lives lost and the financial ramifications of accessing urgent care verses preventative care."

"The reality is that we are on the verge of a healthcare crisis that impacts not only persons living with HIV/AIDS, but everyone in need of healthcare," said FLAA Executive Director, Dr. Gene Copello. "The time for us to act is now."

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Florida Department of Health Bureau of HIV/AIDS:
§ 100,000 men, women and children in Florida are living with HIV disease
§ Approximately 6,000 Floridians are diagnosed with HIV each year
§ Florida ranks second in the nation for pediatric and female AIDS cases
§ Florida is third in the nation for total AIDS cases

Marc Cohen, FLAA board member and president of United Foundation for AIDS, says "It's vital that we don't forget our under-served populations in times of economic difficulty which is why I urge individuals across Florida to attend this event."

The press conference will take place at 12:00 noon, Thursday, April 17th, in the Miami-Dade County Commission Chambers, 111 NW 1st Street, Miami.

To learn more about Florida AIDS Action, and for more information on how to become involved in AIDS advocacy work, please contact Florida AIDS Action by phone at: (800) 779-4898 or by email at: information@floridaaidsaction.org .

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Florida AIDS Action, the only statewide nonprofit HIV/AIDS agency in Florida, promotes social change through community planning, education, public policy research and advocacy. For more information, call (813) 232-5886, or visit on the web at www.floridaaidsaction.org .