Congress revamps housing program for those with HIV

Having shelter can be an important factor for the successful treatment of a person’s virus

In a bipartisan push, Congress has restructured a program that provides housing assistance for people living with HIV to funnel more money into areas struggling to control the outbreak.

While legislators and housing advocates say the adjustments will better target regions with high rates of the virus, these changes are likely to mean less money for some of the large cities that handled the early effects of the epidemic.

To help with the transition, Congress increased funding for the Housing Opportunities for Persons With AIDS ( HOPWA) program about 6% this year. In the past, this money was distributed based on a jurisdiction’s cumulative number of cases ( including people who had died).

Now under the 2017 funding, finalized by Congress in May, HOPWA has awarded $ 320.4 million to qualifying states and local jurisdictions to be apportioned primarily based on their share of the total number of people living with the virus. The number of cases required to qualify for funding also changed from 1,500 cumulative AIDS cases to 2,000 living cases of HIV/ AIDS.

No jurisdiction will receive less HOPWA money than in 2016, but about 25 cities and counties are getting a smaller piece of the pie than before.

“As the formula is fully implemented, without additional funds those jurisdictions will lose out,” said Opal Jones, of the National AIDS Housing Coalition, a housing advocacy group in favor of the formula change. “It’s a great start. It’s just not enough.”

The program, which began in 1992, provides financial assistance to help participants pay for rent, mortgage and utility costs.

“I think we can’t underestimate the power that home has in improving the health in somebody with a chronic condition,” said Russell Bennett, of the National AIDS Housing Coalition.

Shyronn Jones, 39, has struggled financially since she was diagnosed with HIV. She was once a homeowner in New York, but when she moved to Atlanta, the only housing she could afford was an apartment in a crime- ridden pocket of the city. She was having trouble getting medical care, and her white blood cell count dipped to dangerous levels. Jones then got connected to HOPWA, which helped her move into a better neighborhood.

“HOPWA just saved me,” Jones said.

“Without additional funds those jurisdictions will lose out.”

Opal Jones, vice president of the National AIDS Housing Coalition

TREVOR COCHLIN Housing Opportunities for Persons With AIDS helps Shyronn Jones, left, afford a place in Atlanta near a park where her children, Shyloh, center, and Shymere, can safely play.