AIDS RESOURCE CENTER OHIO

25th Anniversary "Highlights"
Dayton and Miami Valley

A Telling Need and Collective History:
In 1984, Ohio and the nation were dealing with a new "cancer" that was causing people to become extremely sick and even die. Under the belief that this "cancer" was affecting only the gay community, the disease was originally called Gay-Related Immune Disease or "GRID", and then later Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). In response to seeing those they cared about becoming sick and dying, concerned citizens began gathering in living rooms and at kitchen tables to mobilize the community around this disease. These grassroots calls to actions would be repeated many times in communities across Ohio. As a result, the Dayton Area AIDS Task Force, AIDS Foundation Dayton, No One's Victory Alone, David's House Compassion and a handful of other AIDS service organizations in our region were born. And over the course of 25 years, these groups joined efforts in order to better meet the collective needs of their communities and eventually formed AIDS Resource Center Ohio (ARC Ohio). Now covering 35 counties and with offices in Dayton, Toledo, Lima and Mansfield, ARC Ohio is geographically the largest AIDS Services organization in Ohio today.

A Mission of Caring, Empowerment and Hope:
The mission of ARC Ohio is to be the client-focused, community-based provider of specialized HIV prevention, testing, advocacy and support services. To this end, in 2009 the Dayton and Miami Valley Office will serve:

• Over 1028 HIV-infected individuals and their loved ones will be provided core medical services, client-centered case management, housing, emergency financial aid and other support services.

• 600 individuals at highest risk for HIV infection or already infected but who do not yet know it, will receive free HIV testing, risk reduction counseling and referral for needed services for this still deadly disease.

• 5,000 individuals will receive critical and life saving HIV information, outreach and prevention services in hopes of reducing HIV transmission rates and preventing further infection.

In total, 92% of ARC Ohio's Dayton and Miami Valley 2009 budget of $1.6 million; will go directly to programs and services and serve almost 8,000 individuals. We can provide these effective and cost-efficient services by maintaining a low overhead and sharing our collective experiences and resources across the 35-county region.

Current Statistics; The Work is Far From Over:
There is still no cure and no preventative vaccine for HIV and the statistics locally for this disease are startling. The sampling of statistics below clearly demonstrate the need is real, current and in our very own backyards.

• Half of all new infections are among young people ages 24 and younger.

• One-fourth of all persons living with HIV in the U.S. are unaware of their status. Unknowingly, these individuals account for more than half of all HIV transmission/new infections.

• Every 9½ minutes, someone is infected with HIV in this country.

• 38% of people are diagnosed AIDS within one year of their first HIV-positive test.

• Montgomery County has the highest rate of reported HIV/AIDS cases in teens ages 13-19 of the ten major urban counties in Ohio—three times the rate of the rest of Ohio.

• Gay and bisexual men of all races are the most severely affected by HIV. Male-to-male sexual contact account for 53% of new HIV infections. An additional 4% are within Injection Drug Using MSM.

• The estimated cost of medication and medical care for the 1,257 reported persons known to be HIV-infected in the Miami Valley Region will cost our community over $32 million a year. If these known/reported HIV-infected people live with the disease for an average of 22.5 years, this will be a cumulative cost to the community of as much as $778 million.

The 2009 anniversary motto is: Together, let's finish the work. These words and the hope it brings cannot come at a better time. With the economic and healthcare outlook concerning us all, the knee-jerk reaction can be to discontinue outreach and care to all but the most critical needs. And given the complacency around HIV in our community today, it would be easy to believe that HIV/AIDS services in the United States and Ohio are not critical. We hope the information shared above proves otherwise and that together, we can finish the work we started in our living rooms and kitchens 25 years ago.

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