Eighteen South Dakotans are participating in a new program --Tri-State HELP (Healthy Environments for Living Positively) -- that provides housing assistance for people with HIV/AIDS. The program was formed in March to help people in the Dakotas and Montana; it received funding in June from the Department of Housing and Urban Development and Housing Opportunities for People with AIDS. Participants can enroll in short-term assistance for 21 weeks or in long-term assistance, which lasts three years. Assistance can be subsidized partially or in full depending on the person’s financial needs. Sheryl Miller, field office director for HUD in Sioux Falls, said the program helps clients without putting them on longer waiting lists for regular HUD assistance. “It also frees up housing assistance for the people on the list,” Miller said. “It brings a whole added resource for the state and for people who need it.” Eighty people in the three states are program clients.

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