|
|
| June 20, 2006 AIDS Action Council Names HIV/AIDS Policy and Government Issues Veteran Ronald S. Johnson Deputy Director Part of sharpened focus on policy leadership to serve members’ clients WASHINGTON, June 20, 2006 – AIDS Action Council, a national membership organization dedicated to HIV/AIDS policies and programs, has announced the appointment of Ronald S. Johnson as Deputy Director. Johnson, a national and local HIV/AIDS public policy and governmental affairs veteran, will begin his new responsibilities in early September. According to Rebecca Haag, Executive Director, Johnson will oversee the Public Policy and Government Affairs staff and functions at the Council, bringing nearly four decades of expertise in HIV/AIDS and health care policy issues to the nation’s capital. “I have admired Ronald’s work for many years,” said Haag. “We already have a strong team doing incredible work in policy and government, and Ronald will provide strategic direction and oversight. He is a superb analyst, presenter, advocate and collaborator, and has a track record of creating and managing high performance teams. He shares my vision that those of us working in HIV must enact a more horizontal strategy and create partnerships with those engaged in other areas of healthcare, across disabilities, and including related businesses and institutions.” Johnson is currently an Associate Executive Director at Gay Men’s Health Crisis (GMHC) in New York, where he directs its public policy and advocacy functions as part of senior management. GMHC is a founding member of AIDS Action Council and is the nation’s first and largest AIDS organization. Johnson joined GMHC in 1997. Immediately prior, he served as the Citywide Coordinator for AIDS Policy in the Office of the Mayor, City of New York, at which time he also served as City Co-Chair of the HIV Health and Human Services Planning Council, which sets the priorities for the use of funds under Title I of the Ryan White Care Act. He also has served as Executive Director of the Minority Task force on AIDS in New York. His volunteer activities are just as distinctive as his work roles. Current Board memberships include Positive Health Project, the New York AIDS Coalition and AIDS Action Council (from which he will resign when he joins its staff). Past Board memberships include the NAMES Project, the National Black Lesbian and Gay Leadership Forum, Positive Body, Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund and GMHC. He formerly served as a member of the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS and is currently a member of the National Black Leadership Commission on AIDS. Johnson is a person living with HIV, diagnosed in 1989. His areas of expertise include topics that are top priority in shaping the landscape of HIV/AIDS public policy and government affairs, including HIV prevention, access to affordable healthcare, disparity issues, and HIV research. "Adding Ronald to Rebecca’s team at AIDS Action Council demonstrates our commitment to ensuring that we are best equipped with experience and expertise as issues around this epidemic become more complex and intricate," said Katy Caldwell, Board Chair of the Council and Executive Director, Legacy Community Health Services in Houston, Tex. AIDS Action Council is a national membership organization dedicated to the development, analysis, cultivation and encouragement of sound policies and programs in response to the HIV epidemic. AIDS Action members represent nearly 100 ASOs, health departments and other organizations in 30 states plus the District of Columbia serving more than 100,000 people every day. The Council ensures broad access to information as well as lobbying and advocacy work in the nation's capital on behalf of those living with HIV. The Urban Coalition for HIV/AIDS Prevention Services (UCHAPS) is a Council member in the seven metropolitan areas that represent more than a third of the nation’s cumulative AIDS cases and are the epicenters of the nation’s urban HIV epidemic. Council member AIDS Education and Training Centers (AETCs) train more than 100,000 service providers annually. For more information, visit www.aidsaction.org. |