Nashville is one step closer to ridding the community of AIDS, thanks to funding from the Center of Disease Control.

The CDC awarded Nashville CARES, Street Works and Neighborhood Health an almost $3.8 million grant for an LGBTQI community health services center called My House.

“It’s always been on the back burner for us to have an LGBTQI community health center,” said Patrick Hamilton, chief development officer at Nashville CARES.

“The three organizations have been working over the last eight to 12 months hammering this out.”

While the services — including prevention, testing and counseling — will be available to everyone, the grant was one of two awarded in Tennessee for strategic efforts to prevent HIV.

The grants especially target African-American men who have sex with men, who make up the majority of the area’s HIV population, Hamilton said.

The CDC grant is to be used over five years to implement the facility, which will have representatives from each of the three organizations.

“I think these three organizations coming together to have an impact in the Middle Tennessee community is really what made our (grant) application so strong,” Hamilton said.

My House aims to prevent HIV/AIDS through education, access to condoms and PrEP, a pill which can help prevent HIV infection. The project will also provide counseling and testing for HIV, tuberculosis and sexually transmitted infections.

Both insured and uninsured individuals will be accepted.

By the numbers

These numbers are applicable to the Nashville-Murfeesboro area:

According to the Tennessee Department of Health and the Metro Public Health Department of Nashville/Davidson County:

o 5,218 were HIV positive in 2014.

oSince 2010, the number of HIV positive individuals increased 21 percent.

oAn estimated 835 people are HIV positive and unaware of their status.

oAn estimated 45 to 50 percent of HIV positive people may not be consistently in HIV medical care.

According to Nashville CARES, people living with HIV in Metro Nashville had these risk factors in 2014:

o52.8 percent unprotected homosexual activity

o 18.1 percent unprotected heterosexual activity

o14.9 percent listed as “other” risks

o 9.8 percent intravenous drug users

article source