California: State Cuts Lead to Desert AIDS Project Layoffs

In the aftermath of AIDS program funding cuts by the Legislature and the governor, the Desert AIDS Project this summer laid off a dozen full- and part-time education and outreach staff. DAP lost approximately $427,000 in state grants for these programs. "We did lose, basically, our education department," said DAP spokesperson Barry Dayton.

California Office of AIDS data show the state has more than 100,000 people living with HIV/AIDS, giving it one of the highest infection rates nationally. Riverside County ranks sixth in the state with about 3,170 people with HIV/AIDS, of whom 2,098 reside in the county's eastern portion. Palm Springs has one of the largest proportions of gay residents in the United States.

Officials declined to put a dollar value on the county cuts, saying it is still unclear what is being eliminated. "They're still sorting this out," said Victoria Jauregui Burns, HIV program chief for DPH. "At this point we're still waiting for some final answers from [the state]."

DAP -- in operation since 1984 -- serves some 2,000 clients in the valley, providing medical care and social services. Its outreach to seniors, Latinos, and women will now be handled by one staffer, Daytona said.

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