By: DUNCAN OSBORNE
Gay City News
07/10/2008
07/10/2008
Since taking over the city's health department in 2002, Dr. Thomas R. Frieden has banned smoking in restaurants and bars, raised taxes on cigarettes, and given away tens of thousands of nicotine patches to help smokers quit. The health department estimates there are 300,000 fewer smokers in the city today.
The health department has banned trans fats, required some restaurants to post the calorie counts in the foods they sell, and put in place a scheme to more closely monitor diabetics.
Frieden supported the distribution of unused needles to injecting drug users to stop the spread of HIV, distributed the city's own condom brand in a campaign that told New Yorkers to "get some," and aggressively promoted HIV testing.
But as the health department has reported increasing HIV infections in some gay populations and high, but stable rates in other groups of gay and bisexual men, the city has not responded with a high profile campaign.
On the contrary, in the city's $59.1 billion budget for the 2009 fiscal year that began on July 1, the health department cut $1.3 million in HIV funding including dollars for HIV testing, a central component in the department's AIDS fight. The City Council said that the cut presented by the Bloomberg administration was actually $10.1 million and that the Council restored $5.8 million of that reduction.
Advocates offer a range of explanations, with some saying the gay community has not demanded action or has intensely resisted some Frieden proposals, such as ending written consent for HIV testing, to the point that he is wary of broaching new ideas.
Others say the commissioner is afraid to tackle the complex problem of gay men, their sex lives and drug use, and focuses instead on those problems that can be easily sold to the public and will produce results quickly.
"I think the onus is kind of on both," said Terri Smith-Caronia, vice president of New York policy at Housing Works, an AIDS group that is known for its aggressive advocacy. "I think the community came to [Frieden], but they didn't come to him and sit on him."
While some AIDS groups sought $5.5 million earlier this year to address HIV among gay and bisexual men of color, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg used a $4.5 billion budget surplus to address future deficits and obligations. That required cuts.
Gary English, interim executive director of the New York State Black Gay Network, a coalition of 16 organizations, headed the group seeking the additional cash and agreed with Smith-Caronia.
"I think it's a little bit on both ends," he said. "I think the black and Latino groups need to take a page from ACT UP in the 80s... You've got to put your issues in their face. I think that folks are not making enough noise."
Yet another coalition approached Frieden earlier this year with a proposal for regulating city sex clubs and bathhouses as a way of keeping them open. While the prospect that the city might try to close all such businesses drew more than 100 people to a February town meeting, the regulatory effort appears to be "dead in the water," one organizer said.
Dan Carlson, along with Bruce Kellerhouse, organized a series of eight town meetings from 2003 into 2005 that collectively drew thousands to talk about gay men, drugs, and HIV. Both noted, with some anger, in 2005 interviews that those meetings had not provoked a response.
"I think it mirrors the lack of energy and commitment within the community," Carlson said referring to the budget cuts. "This is what happens when the community doesn't continue to push its leaders."
A notable budget cut was the complete elimination of dollars to address crystal meth use among gay men. Just two years ago, that was a major issue in the city and one that does not appear to have abated.
The City Council, led by Speaker Christine Quinn, an out lesbian who represents Chelsea, the heart of gay white male New York and the center of the meth problem, supported cutting the meth funds. Carlson said that would likely not hurt Quinn politically.
"With the exception of a few of us who will be upset about it... it will largely go unnoticed by the average gay man or they will hear about it, but not hold her or any of our leaders accountable," Carlson said.
At the same time, there were no protests demanding that the city ban trans fats or monitor the care of diabetics. Activists say nothing prevents Frieden, Bloomberg, or Quinn from taking the lead.
"I don't know why Commissioner Frieden has not used his bully pulpit which he has shown a willingness to use elsewhere," said Dennis deLeon, president of the Latino Commission on AIDS. "They could do more in terms of leadership."
Sean Barry, co-director at New York City AIDS Housing Network (NYCAHN), said that Frieden was "pretty bold in expanding syringe access particularly in Queens," but the commissioner had not done the same for gay men and HIV.
"No one has presented him with a road map for how to respond," Barry said. "That doesn't let them off the hook, they should be leading the charge... They haven't shown leadership."
Spencer Cox, founder and executive director of the Medius Institute for Gay Men's Health, credited Frieden's effort to test every Bronx resident for HIV over the next three years.
"I think he's been trying to ask, 'Okay what's the next step?" Cox said. "I think the proposal to test everyone in the Bronx is part of that."
Both Bloomberg and Frieden have expressed great frustration with the resistance from some gay leaders and AIDS groups to their proposal to end written consent for HIV testing, something they argued could have a significant impact on infection rates.
"I don't think they're not trying," Cox said. "The answers aren't obvious and the politics of our community make it difficult to implement."
The Bloomberg administration has been out front in the past. In 2003, the mayor said that the city would "become the national model in leading the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention goal of reducing new HIV infections in the United States by 50 percent by 2005."
Among gay and bisexual men, HIV rates have either increased or stayed the same since Bloomberg gave that speech.
"Wouldn't we love it if the mayor and the commissioner had come through on their promise to reduce HIV infections by half?" Carlson said. "I don't think the community is so anti-government that we wouldn't work with them."
The health department has banned trans fats, required some restaurants to post the calorie counts in the foods they sell, and put in place a scheme to more closely monitor diabetics.
Frieden supported the distribution of unused needles to injecting drug users to stop the spread of HIV, distributed the city's own condom brand in a campaign that told New Yorkers to "get some," and aggressively promoted HIV testing.
But as the health department has reported increasing HIV infections in some gay populations and high, but stable rates in other groups of gay and bisexual men, the city has not responded with a high profile campaign.
On the contrary, in the city's $59.1 billion budget for the 2009 fiscal year that began on July 1, the health department cut $1.3 million in HIV funding including dollars for HIV testing, a central component in the department's AIDS fight. The City Council said that the cut presented by the Bloomberg administration was actually $10.1 million and that the Council restored $5.8 million of that reduction.
Advocates offer a range of explanations, with some saying the gay community has not demanded action or has intensely resisted some Frieden proposals, such as ending written consent for HIV testing, to the point that he is wary of broaching new ideas.
Others say the commissioner is afraid to tackle the complex problem of gay men, their sex lives and drug use, and focuses instead on those problems that can be easily sold to the public and will produce results quickly.
"I think the onus is kind of on both," said Terri Smith-Caronia, vice president of New York policy at Housing Works, an AIDS group that is known for its aggressive advocacy. "I think the community came to [Frieden], but they didn't come to him and sit on him."
While some AIDS groups sought $5.5 million earlier this year to address HIV among gay and bisexual men of color, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg used a $4.5 billion budget surplus to address future deficits and obligations. That required cuts.
Gary English, interim executive director of the New York State Black Gay Network, a coalition of 16 organizations, headed the group seeking the additional cash and agreed with Smith-Caronia.
"I think it's a little bit on both ends," he said. "I think the black and Latino groups need to take a page from ACT UP in the 80s... You've got to put your issues in their face. I think that folks are not making enough noise."
Yet another coalition approached Frieden earlier this year with a proposal for regulating city sex clubs and bathhouses as a way of keeping them open. While the prospect that the city might try to close all such businesses drew more than 100 people to a February town meeting, the regulatory effort appears to be "dead in the water," one organizer said.
Dan Carlson, along with Bruce Kellerhouse, organized a series of eight town meetings from 2003 into 2005 that collectively drew thousands to talk about gay men, drugs, and HIV. Both noted, with some anger, in 2005 interviews that those meetings had not provoked a response.
"I think it mirrors the lack of energy and commitment within the community," Carlson said referring to the budget cuts. "This is what happens when the community doesn't continue to push its leaders."
A notable budget cut was the complete elimination of dollars to address crystal meth use among gay men. Just two years ago, that was a major issue in the city and one that does not appear to have abated.
The City Council, led by Speaker Christine Quinn, an out lesbian who represents Chelsea, the heart of gay white male New York and the center of the meth problem, supported cutting the meth funds. Carlson said that would likely not hurt Quinn politically.
"With the exception of a few of us who will be upset about it... it will largely go unnoticed by the average gay man or they will hear about it, but not hold her or any of our leaders accountable," Carlson said.
At the same time, there were no protests demanding that the city ban trans fats or monitor the care of diabetics. Activists say nothing prevents Frieden, Bloomberg, or Quinn from taking the lead.
"I don't know why Commissioner Frieden has not used his bully pulpit which he has shown a willingness to use elsewhere," said Dennis deLeon, president of the Latino Commission on AIDS. "They could do more in terms of leadership."
Sean Barry, co-director at New York City AIDS Housing Network (NYCAHN), said that Frieden was "pretty bold in expanding syringe access particularly in Queens," but the commissioner had not done the same for gay men and HIV.
"No one has presented him with a road map for how to respond," Barry said. "That doesn't let them off the hook, they should be leading the charge... They haven't shown leadership."
Spencer Cox, founder and executive director of the Medius Institute for Gay Men's Health, credited Frieden's effort to test every Bronx resident for HIV over the next three years.
"I think he's been trying to ask, 'Okay what's the next step?" Cox said. "I think the proposal to test everyone in the Bronx is part of that."
Both Bloomberg and Frieden have expressed great frustration with the resistance from some gay leaders and AIDS groups to their proposal to end written consent for HIV testing, something they argued could have a significant impact on infection rates.
"I don't think they're not trying," Cox said. "The answers aren't obvious and the politics of our community make it difficult to implement."
The Bloomberg administration has been out front in the past. In 2003, the mayor said that the city would "become the national model in leading the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention goal of reducing new HIV infections in the United States by 50 percent by 2005."
Among gay and bisexual men, HIV rates have either increased or stayed the same since Bloomberg gave that speech.
"Wouldn't we love it if the mayor and the commissioner had come through on their promise to reduce HIV infections by half?" Carlson said. "I don't think the community is so anti-government that we wouldn't work with them."
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment