Join the 12-12 Campaign Today! (http://www.lac.org/wish/index.php/wish/C66)    

What is the 12-12 Campaign? (hyperlink to 1212.pdf) The 12-12 Campaign is a momentous new state budget campaign. With your help and support, we will work to secure an increase of $12 million for HIV related services for women in the FY 2006 New York State Budget.

It has been twelve years since the Women, Children, Youth and Family Services portfolio of the New York State Department of Health-AIDS Institute has seen an increase in state funding. Despite rising HIV infections and AIDS diagnosis among women in New York State, funding for the portfolio, which includes family-centered and adolescent health, HIV prevention services and support for families in transition, has not kept pace.

Why $12 million? This campaign came together around the notion of applying $1 million per year for each year that the women’s services portfolio has been flat-funded. This is a reasonable and realistic beginning to what we expect to be an on-going commitment from the Governor and the Legislature. This commitment of resources would be a resounding message of support to combating the HIV/AIDS epidemic among one of the most vulnerable and most affected populations: women and adolescent girls.

Why Now? The NYS AIDS Advisory Council released a compelling and alarming report entitled “Women in Peril-HIV&AIDS: The Rising Toll on Women of Color” (Key highlights). The information released in this report demands immediate action, and we were motivated to start a campaign encouraging state action. The specter of regressive and harmful policy changes to Federal sources of HIV funding to the state, such as the Ryan White CARE Act, dictates that State government step up its commitment of resources to fight the HIV/AIDS epidemic, especially on behalf of women.

Join the 12-12 Campaign today by printing out and signing our Statement of Partnership and faxing it to 212-675-0286.