In my District alone, Bushwick accounted for nearly a third of all the new AIDS cases reported in New York in 1994. That neighborhood ranks first in AIDS cases among Hispanics and first in cases among women. Let me take a minute to put a human face on these alarming statistics. A number of factors, however, complicate our ability to treat patients from disadvantaged communities. One of these is that most current therapies are highly complicated and must be strictly followed.
Some treatments require taking four, five and even six drugs at a time.
And of course, these medicines are very, very expensive. We have to address these special needs on two fronts. First, we must make effective, cutting-edge drugs available wherever they are needed. Then, we must direct funding to the kinds of organizations that would be best suited to ensure that those drugs are administered properly and effectively. For these reasons, it is extremely important that we target our funding to organizations that can best deliver such treatment to poor minority communities.