TITLE
Recommendation to authorize City Manager, or designee, to execute an agreement, and all necessary documents including subcontracts, any subsequent amendments including any change to the amount of the grant, with the Los Angeles County Division of HIV and STD Programs, to accept and expend grant funding in an amount not to exceed $768,639, to provide HIV Testing Services, Social and Sexual Networks, for the period January 1, 2020 through December 31, 2022, with the option to renew for two additional two-year periods, at the discretion of the City Manager; and
Increase appropriations in the Health Fund Group in the Health and Human Services Department by $256,213, offset by reimbursement grant revenue. (Citywide)
DISCUSSION
Since the beginning of the HIV/AIDS epidemic the City of Long Beach Department of Health and Human Services (Health Department) has provided HIV testing and counseling services to curtail the epidemic. The HIV Testing Services (HTS) Social and Sexual Networks (SSN) Program uses Los Angeles County funds to provide HIV testing and linkages to medical and other support services. Services are provided in the Long Beach community and surrounding areas to clients who have limited or no access to health care. The SSN is a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)-promoted and evidence-based approach to identify and test those who may be at risk for contracting HIV. The CDC estimates that approximately one in seven people (15 percent) who have HIV are unaware of their infection. SSN is a targeted and focused approach that has successfully identified people with undiagnosed HIV infection and connected them to HIV testing and other prevention services (CDC, “Use of Social Networks: A Recruitment Strategy for Counseling, Testing and Referral Services, Trainer’s Manual,” (STD/HIV Prevention Training Centers Part III, Atlanta, GA, July 2013).
The City of Long Beach (City) has seen significant increases in sexually transmitted diseases ...
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