# Presentation: 470183

## HIV/AIDS among African Americans:

**CDC Consultation on HIV/AIDS and African American Women**
**Crowne Plaza Perimeter Hotel**
**Atlanta, GA**
**June 20, 2007**

**HIV/AIDS among African Americans:**
**CDC’s Strategies for a Heightened **
**National Response**

## 	Over the last two years, CDC has re-examined and intensified its response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic in African American communities.

## Activities

- Convened cross CIO Workgroup to address HIV/AIDS among African Americans
- Conducted inventory of activities targeting African Americans
- Held national consultations on HIV/AIDS among African American MSM, The Role of Faith Communities, and the Crisis of HIV/AIDS among African Americans
- Disseminated a *Dear Colleague* Letter from CDC Director emphasizing CDC’s commitment to addressing this epidemic

## Additional Activities

- Developed two Fact Sheets on the Impact of HIV/AIDS in the African American Community
- Developed a Web page on the CDC Website focused on HIV/AIDS among African Americans
- November 16, 2006 Satellite Broadcast
- Launched CDC’s Heightened National Response on March 8, 2007

## Budget

- CDC’s current budget for domestic HIV research and prevention activities is $605 million, 49% is directed to programs for African Americans.
- U.S. HIV prevention resources have decreased for several years.
- As new funding becomes available or existing programs end, CDC is directing most of these resources to intensify efforts targeting African Americans.
- A total of $35.7 million in new funds were available in FY 2006 and 2007.  Approximately 63%, or $22.4 million of these funds were directed to  African Americans.
- Additional $35 million available in FY 2007 for health departments to support HIV testing for African Americans

## CDC’s Heightened National Response

- Expanding the reach of prevention services
- Increasing opportunities for diagnosing and treating HIV
- Developing new, effective prevention interventions
- Mobilizing broader community action

## Expanding the Reach of Prevention Services

- CDC is:
- 	Increasing investment in prevention programs serving African Americans and enhancing culturally appropriate strategies for delivering services to this population
- Ask Partners to:
- 	Build linkages with other organizations that provide related social and health services to African Americans

## Increasing Opportunities for Diagnosing and Treating HIV

- CDC is:
- 	Increasing investments and expanding access to HIV testing for African Americans
- Ask Partners to:
- 	Increase access to HIV testing and treatment services by offering them or partnering with community organizations that offer them

## Developing New, Effective Prevention Interventions

- CDC is:
- 	Initiating new research projects to test newly developed, community-based, or adapted interventions for African Americans at increased risk for contracting or transmitting HIV
- Ask Partners to:
- 	Involve African American community stakeholders in developing and implementing research designs that address a range of issues related to accessing HIV prevention, treatment, and care

## Mobilizing Broader Community Action

- CDC is:
- 	Developing new channels for communicating about the impact of HIV/AIDS on African American families and communities, and the consequences of silence and stigma about HIV
- Ask Partners to:
- 	Break the silence and increase awareness of HIV/AIDS among friends, family, co-workers, and others within African American communities

##  ACT! Against AIDS

**A****-Awareness.** Be aware of the HIV/AIDS crisis within the community. Keep yourself informed about ways to protect yourself, your family, and others.
**C****-Communicate with others.** Tell your partner, family, friends, and co-workers. Have conversations about HIV/AIDS and its impact on all of us.
**T****-Test for HIV.** This includes you and the ones you love – your family and friends. Everybody needs to know whether they have HIV, so they can protect their health and the lives of others.

## Launch of the Heightened National Response

- Meeting held March 8, 2007 at CDC headquarters with Director, Dr. Julie  Gerberding to discuss
- The impact of HIV/AIDS among African Americans
- CDC’s priority activities responding to HIV/AIDS among African Americans
- Examples of what African American leaders are doing
- What commitments/actions attending leaders will make in response to the HIV/AIDS crisis among African Americans

## Participating African American Leaders

**Arts and Entertainment**
**Business**
**Civic/Social**
**Education**

**Faith**
**Health**
**Media**

- More than 70 African American leaders attended from various sectors including:

## Highlights of Leader Commitments

**Vivian Berryhill, President and Founder - National Coalition of Pastors’ Spouses**
- Increase distribution of HIV/AIDS: a Manual for Faith Communities and trainings in black churches
- Ask network of 2,598 clergy spouses to work through husbands to include HIV/AIDS information in bulletins, church fans, newsletters at least once per quarter
**Cheryl Cooper, Executive Director - National Council of Negro Women**
- Increase visibility of issue through its website and blast e-mails to its members
- Conduct a forum on HIV/AIDS at the NCNW convention
**Marva Smith Battle-Bey, President - National Coalition of 100 Black Women, Inc.**
- Support and lead in the mobilizing efforts to end HIV/AIDS

## Plans for Mobilizing African American Leaders for a Heightened Response

- CDC will be working in partnership with African American leaders to
- ensure completion of their initial and future commitments to use their
- organizations to raise awareness and increase actions to halt HIV/AIDS
- Conducting follow-up strategies to facilitate the fulfillment of pledges, including
- Discussing how leaders will implement activities
- Identifying points of contact
- Inquiring about needs for assistance
- Sharing information about HIV/AIDS
- Developing time line for executing activities
- Linking leaders and their organizations to traditional HIV/AIDS partners (e.g., health departments, CBOs, ASOs)
- Reporting on progress made in fulfilling leadership commitments

## DHAP has created an internal governing structure to ensure support and success of cross-cutting activities such as the African American Heightened Response

## CDC’s Heightened National Response to the HIV/AIDS Crisis among African Americans Internal Organization Chart

## Steering Committee

- Comprised of Division Director, Department Directors, and Associate Directors who are responsible for deciding policy and governance to support cross-cutting priorities
- Decisions and recommendations communicated to Branch Chiefs for their consideration and response

## Executive Committee

- The Executive Committee includes the Chair and Work Group leaders who are responsible for:
- Prioritizing activities
- Overseeing cross-workgroup and cross-branch coordination and implementation of those activities
- Monitoring progress
- Communicating about the progress of the work groups
- Recommending policy and budget directions

## Work Groups

- The Work Groups are comprised of experts from DHAP and other CDC branches responsible for:
- Communicating with branches about priority strategies and intended outcomes
- Coordinating across branches the implementation of activities
- Recommending strategies to address gaps
- Developing synthesis documents and other work products that result from the branches’ activities
- Assessing progress and barriers to implementation

## Internal Communication

- Important that everyone in the Division is aware of the heightened response priority activities
- Regular updates will keep staff informed and report on progress
- Email
- Website (DHAP intranet)
- Branch meetings
- Lecture series
- Periodic All Hands meetings

## Questions?