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July 2003 On Monday, July 14, the National Organizations Responding to AIDS (NORA) Coalition, for which AIDS Action serves as the convener, held its monthly meeting. Miguelina León, a health policy consultant and the former director of Government Relations and Public Policy for the National Minority AIDS Council (NMAC), was the meeting's featured speaker. Ms. León's presentation served as part two of on ongoing dialogue about the recently announced changes to the CDC's HIV prevention strategy. In the April 18, 2003 issue of the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), the CDC announced plans to refocus its HIV prevention efforts so that it could respond better to the changing needs of the epidemic. Since then, the CDC has held four regional consultations with community-based organizations and other concerned members of the HIV/AIDS community to get their input on select portions of the CDC’s new prevention strategy. Last month the coalition heard a presentation from Dr. Ida Onorato, acting deputy director of the Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), who spoke about the new program from the CDC's perspective. Ms. León's presentation highlighted some of the challenges that the HIV/AIDS community might face when the new initiative is implemented. While agreeing that the overall goals of preventing new infections, increasing access to testing and counseling, and linking people who know their status to appropriate care, treatment, and prevention services are commendable, Ms. León expressed concerns regarding the funding of the new initiative, specifically how the new goals will impact the resources of existing programs. Of particular concern is the impact that this redirection of resources may have on community-based minority organizations and the funding that they receive from the federal government. Following the presentation, NORA members engaged in an animated discussion about the new guidelines and devised strategies for the coalition to use in response to the CDC's proposal.
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