Southern Nevada to get part of $2 million in AIDS funding

Art Nadler

Tuesday, Dec. 22, 1998 | 11:25 a.m.

Clark and Nye counties will receive a portion of between $2 million and $3 million by March 1 to curtail the rising costs of treating HIV patients, Clark County Health District officials said Monday.

The money, which also will be disbursed to Mohave County in northern Arizona, was appropriated through the federal Ryan White Comprehensive AIDS Resources Emergency Act, which was passed by Congress in 1990.

Also known as the Ryan White CARE Act, it provides funds to develop care programs and to pay for medical and social support for people living with the HIV disease. This the first time Nevada has received such money, which is in addition to other federal AIDS funding.

Ryan White was a 13-year-old Florida boy who died of AIDS on April 8, 1990. He contracted the disease through a blood transfusion and had to fight his community to attend school.

A planning council, developed through the Health District, has identified 29 areas the money will be used for in eligible metropolitan areas in the three counties. First priority will be providing money for HIV and AIDS medications not covered under the state AIDS Drug Assistance Programs.

Ambulatory care, substance abuse treatment and counseling, housing, home health care, day and respite care and hospice support are other top priorities. Funding for each category is currently being worked out.

"About 85 percent of people with AIDS are on disability, maybe getting $625 a month, and that's all they have to live on, " said Chris Reynolds, co-chairman of the planning council and project coordinator for Aid for AIDS of Nevada. "This will make a difference."

There have been 3,030 reported cases of AIDS and 2,046 people infected with the HIV virus in Clark County since 1983, said Rick Reich, AIDS service coordinator for the county.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention this month called on states to require that the names of individuals infected with the HIV virus be reported to health departments. Some AIDS organizations across the country have warned that this might discourage people from being tested.

Nevada has been reporting names since 1992, Reich said. He feels this helped convince the Health Resources and Services Administration -- which distributes the funds -- to award the money based on identifiable sources.

There are a total of 51 metropolitan areas across the country, of which Clark County is now one, that receive funds. Nevada will receive at least $2 million until federal guidelines change in 2000. The state is competing with Norfolk, Va., for an additional $1 million. A decision based on need should be determined soon, said Michael Collins, co-chair of the council and an AIDS nurse.

"A check should be hitting the community in April," Collins said. HIV and AIDS patients will be required to submit an application of need to the Health District for consideration.