May 3, 2005

NYCWatch: FRIEDEN'S BACK-ROOM BLOW-OFF

"And when we get behind closed doors,
And when she lets her hair hang down,
Then she makes me glad that I'm a man.
Oh, no one knows what goes on behind closed doors."
—Charlie Rich, "Behind Closed Doors"

That may well have been the ditty NYC health commish Dr. Tom Frieden was singing to himself when he convened the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) at 9 a.m. to discuss how best to allocate shrinking federal funds for AIDS housing. Why that song? Because Frieden banned from the meeting the city's actual AIDS housing clients and top advocates, who have provided their expertise at such summits as part of the 13-year-old Housing Opportunities for People with AIDS (HOPWA) Advisory Committee, which the DOHMH disbanded last summer.

Later that morning, those advocates—from Housing Works, Bailey House and the New York City AIDS Housing Network (NYCAHN)—held a press release on the steps of City Hall. Brandishing bright signs that demanded OPEN THE MEETING: LET NEW YORKERS LIVING WITH HIV/AIDS BE HEARD, they provided a bold backdrop for New York City public advocate Betsy Gotbaum, who blasted Frieden for his closed-door tactics. "Those who know the most [about AIDS housing] are excluded," said Gotbaum. "They've reached out [to Frieden's office], but their calls are met with silence." Later, she told Housing Works AIDS Issues Update, "The advocates say it's easier to get a meeting in D.C. than with Frieden."

"Advocates say it's easier to get a meeting in D.C. than with Frieden," said public advocate Gotbaum.

Why the closed-door tactics? Advocates believe it's because Frieden—in the wake of a recent $9.75 million cut in the city's federal HOPWA funds—wants to further slash HOPWA funding for direct services to homeless people with HIV/AIDS. NYCAHN's Jennifer Flynn cited a widely praised Citiwide Harm Reduction (citiwidehr.org) outreach program for PLWHAs living in single-room occupancy (SRO) hotels, which provide the bulk of the city's emergency housing for positive homeless people. The program gets residents basic needs, from medical care and doctor-visit transportation to—yes—toilet paper, commonly unavailable in the often-unkempt hotels. "Frieden's already cut the program by $300,000," said Flynn, predicting that "he wants to make further cuts. We'd hope the cuts would come from the administrative side, not from direct services." On just such crucial decisions, said Flynn, advocates "used to weigh in."

Frieden's snub has ended all that—and on Friday, advocates were fuming. "I demand that the DOH open the meeting," bellowed NYCAHN boardmember and spokesman Amos Hough, a former SRO dweller who now lives in Brooklyn. "Stop the backroom deals."

You can push the same message by calling the DOHMH at 917.438.9766 and telling Dr. Frieden to reestablish the HOPWA Advisory Committee now!

AND WHILE YOU'RE AT IT:

On Wednesday, May 11, the New York City AIDS Housing Network needs YOU to...
PACK THE CITY COUNCIL GALLERY!

That day, the City Council is expected to pass...

• Intro. 535 ensures that every homeless person with HIV/AIDS who goes into the emergency housing system gets a referral to permanent supportive housing within 90 days.
• Intro. 543 creates a centralized database to track supportive-housing units...and lets people know where they are on the waiting list

...and a biiiiig crowd will remind them that these bills are crucial to homeless people living with HIV/AIDS.

For more information,
Call: 718.802.9540
Fax: 718.802.9741
E-mail: flynn@nycahn.org
Para espanol, llame: Liam a 718.802.9540

The Housing Works AIDS Issues Update is reported, written and edited by Diana Scholl, David Thorpe, Phil Fox Rose, Christine Campbell, terri smith-caronia and Housing Works staff. Send your feedback, leads and story ideas to d.scholl@housingworks.org.

You can reach us by phone at 212-967-1500 x168, by fax at 212-868-4222, and by email at d.scholl@housingworks.org. Housing Works provides housing, advocacy and services to homeless people living with AIDS and HIV. Housing Works is the nation's largest community-based AIDS organization and the nation's largest minority-controlled AIDS organization.

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