Bill Tracker

Funding for HIV prevention in African-born Minnesotans

Updated: May 31, 2005

HIV Prevention for African-Born Communities Looks Promising in Health Conference Committee

The Senate has successfully appropriated $300,000 in emergency funding for HIV prevention education targeting Minnesota’s African-born community. Unlike the Senate, the House health omnibus bill does not include a recommendation for funding. Now we must persuade the Health Conference Committee, which consists of five Senate members and five House members, to include it in the Health Omnibus bill. Click here to contact members of the conference committee to ask for their support. Click here to read more about this bill.

Updated: May 10, 2005

Senate Includes $300,000 in HIV Prevention for African-Born Communities in Health Omnibus Bill

The Senate included $300,000 in emergency aid to prevent HIV in Minnesota’s African-born community in its omnibus health bill. Sen. Scott Dibble [DFL-Minneapolis] first proposed funding for HIV prevention in African communities during the 2004 session. The Senate and the House will now meet in conference committee to hammer out a final version of the health omnibus bill. In order for the $300,000 for HIV prevention funding in the African-born community to become a reality the conference committee must include it in their final draft. Unlike the Senate, the House health omnibus bill does not include a recommendation for funding.

Updated: May 4, 2005

The following language is included in the Senate health and human services omnibus bill. It is not included in the House version of this bill. Advocates need to encourage the Governor and members of the HHS omnibus bill committee to adopt the senate language. Once the conference committee is appointed, we will post their names and contact information on this Web page.

[AIDS PREVENTION FOR AFRICAN-BORN
RESIDENTS.] For fiscal year 2006 only, the
commissioner shall reallocate $300,000 from the
grant program under Minnesota Statutes, section
145.928, for grants in accordance with
Minnesota Statutes, section 145.924, paragraph
(b), for a public education and awareness
campaign targeting communities of African-born
Minnesota residents. The grants shall be
designed to:
(1) promote knowledge and understanding about
HIV and to increase knowledge in order to
eliminate and reduce the risk for HIV infection;
(2) encourage screening and testing for HIV; and
(3) connect individuals to public health and
health care resources. The grants must be
awarded to collaborative efforts that bring
together nonprofit community-based groups with
demonstrated experience in addressing the public
health, health care, and social service needs of
African-born communities.
[FAMILY PLANNING GRANTS.]

Updated: April 25, 2005

Hopeful Signs for HIV Prevention Education for African-born Minnesotans

Senator Linda Higgins presented an amendment to the Senate Health Budget Committee to include funding for HIV Prevention Education for African-born Minnesotans in the senate Health Omnibus bill. Although this amendment was not formally adopted, there is a sense of bi-partisan support within the committee. To insure this critical initiative is funded, please contact members of the Senate Health Finance Committee, which are listed below.

Minnesota Senate Finance Committee: Health and Human Services Budget Division

Updated: April 20, 2005

Prevention Funding Targeting African Communities Still in the Mix

Sen. Linda Higgins [DFL - Minneapolis] is pushing to get emergency funding for HIV prevention targeting African communities included in the Senate's omnibus health and human services funding bill [SF65]. According to the Minnesota HIV epidemiology report for 2004 released last week by Minnesota Department of Health, African-born residents continue to comprise one-fifth of the new infections reported in Minnesota, but resources to respond to this emerging aspect of the HIV epidemic in MN are severely limited. Again, the struggle with moving this proposal ahead is the constraints created by the State's 'no new taxes' budgeting.

Updated: April 5, 2005

Senate Health Committee Passes Plan to Increase Prevention Services for African-born Minnesotans

The African-born HIV prevention funding bill [SF 968], sponsored by Sen. Dibble [DFL-Minneapolis], passed the Senate Health and Family Security Committee on Thursday, March 31. The bill proposes a one-time funding allocation of $300,000 to help prevent HIV in the African-born community. The question of whether or not there will actually be any funding appropriated is now before a budget committee chaired by Sen. Linda Berglin [DFL – Minneapolis]. Pastor Linus Nyambu of Ascending Praise Church in Bloomington spoke on behalf of the bill and said, “The most frightening thing is not the disease. It is the whole process of health disintegration, rejection by both friends and relatives, hopelessness and the eventual cruelty of dying alone.”

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Last Updated: Friday, March 30, 2007
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