Is the city wasting money by not spending more on housing for people with AIDS?

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Is the city wasting money by not spending more on housing for people with AIDS?

POSTED: Wednesday, June 30, 2010, 7:49 PM
Filed Under: Budget | Health

That's the claim behind a new report authored by ACT UP Philadelphia. Here's a snippet from it:

The city spends money inefficiently (ware)housing people in shelters and then paying for their medical care, rather than providing housing through more cost-effective models. In addition, lack of stable housing increases the likelihood of engaging in high-risk behaviors, thus increasing the likelihood of being HIV-positive.

You can download the report in full here. The organization goes on to explain how other metropolises have saved money by spending more on housing for people with AIDS: "In New York City, 95 percent of the cost of providing supportive housing for people with AIDS was recouped through savings in emergency room visits and medical care," reads ACT UP's press release.

According to ACT UP, the waiting list for the city's housing subsidies for people with AIDS has grown in the past year, from 143 to 200 people.

Today at 1 p.m., ACT UP, Proyecto Sol and Philadelphia GAWD rallied outside of City Hall to publicize these findings.

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