Publications
A Lesson from the AIDS Crisis for Dealing with COVID-19
2020
Finkelstein, R. (2020, May 7). A Lesson from the AIDS Crisis for Dealing with COVID-19. City Limits.
Ruth Finkelstein
The current top-down funding approach to address COVID-19 is leaving many communities without the resources to meet their health, economic, and safety needs. The Ryan White CARE Act, passed in 1990, not only made federal funds available for fighting HIV/AIDS, but created a process for local planning councils of stakeholders to determine how federal funds would be used based on the needs of their particular communities. These planning councils exist to this day and have directed funds to clinics, nonprofit support groups, and other community organizations who are working on the ground with the most intimate knowledge of where community needs are greatest. Adopting the Ryan White CARE Act model could be an effective mechanism to address the broad community impacts of COVID-19 by directing funding support to where it’s needed most.