How are HOPWA funds available in LA?How are HOPWA funds used?Who is eligible to receive HOPWA?Local HOPWA guideMedical transportationNutritionSupport groups
What is the Housing Opportunities for People with AIDS (HOPWA)?
In 1992, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) instituted HOPWA, Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS, to provide housing assistance and supportive services for low to moderate income persons with HIV/AIDS and their families.
Monies are awarded to states or eligible metropolitan areas based upon the number of cumulative AIDS cases in that area, as determined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Although the City of New Orleans qualified for funding when HOPWA was instituted in 1992, the State of Louisiana as a whole did not begin receiving HOPWA funds until 1994. Since that time, the Louisiana HOPWA program has been administered by the Louisiana Office of Public Health's HIV/AIDS Program (HAP). In 1999, the City of Baton Rouge also became a qualified metropolitan area eligible to receive HOPWA funding.
How are HOPWA funds available throughout Louisiana?
Through HOPWA, the state receives housing assistance funds, which are disbursed in regions other than New Orleans and Baton Rouge. Funding for the greater New Orleans area and the greater Baton Rouge area is administered through separate grants provided directly to the City of New Orleans and the City of Baton Rouge.
Once HOPWA funds have been awarded, HAP requests proposals for funds from qualified residential facilities for person with HIV/AIDS and from community-based organizations (CBOs) that provide supportive services to individuals living with HIV/AIDS.
One source of assistance available through HOPWA is short-term emergency rental assistance, which provides funding to HIV-positive individuals to assist in paying their living expenses, such as rent, mortgages and utilities, for a maximum period of five months.
Another source of assistance through HOPWA is a tenant-based rental assistance program which helps pay rent.
The final source of assistance through HOPWA is a residential facility program which houses people with HIV/AIDS in a group-like setting.
Who is eligible to receive HOPWA assistance?
To be eligible for HOPWA an individual must be:
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HIV positive
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Louisiana resident
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80% of the median area income
New Orleans area:
Mayor's Office of Health Policy, 504-658-2800
Baton Rouge area:
Office of Community Development, 225-389-3038
For information in the rest of Louisiana:
Kira Radtke Friedrich, Services Manager, MPH, 1450 Poydras Street Suite 2136, New Orleans, LA, 70112, phone: 504-568-7474.
Across the state, there are several Medical Transportation Services that bring medications to qualified persons with HIV/AIDS. The following list identifies organizations by Region that offer Medical Transportation Services.
Alexandria Area
CLASS (Central Louisiana AIDS Support Services)
Tel: (318-442-1010) Fax: (318-443-5216) 904 13th Street, Alexandria, LA 71301
Baton Rouge Area
HAART (HIV Alliance for Region II)
Tel: (225-927-1269) Fax: (225-927-7367) 4550 North Boulevard, Suite 250, Baton Rouge, LA 70806 Website: www.haartinc.org
FSGBR (Family Service of Greater Baton Rouge)
Tel: (225-927-9810) Fax: (225-927-9807) 4727 Revere Ave, Baton Rouge, LA 70808 Website: www.fsgbr.org
VOLUNTEERS OF AMERICA II
Tel: (225-922-3900) Fax: (225-925-1267) 2124 Wooddale Blvd., Baton Rouge, LA 70806 Website: www.voa.org
Houma Area
NO/AIDS TASKFORCE CASS (Collaborative AIDS Support Services)
Tel: (985-223-2920) Fax: (985-223-2903) 813 Belanger St., Houma, LA 70360 Website: www.noaidstaskforce.org
Lafayette Area
Acadiana CARES
Tel: (337-233-2437) Fax: (337-235-4178) 809-11 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, Lafayette, LA 70501 Website: www.acadianacares.org
Lake Charles Area
SLAC (Southwest Louisiana AIDS Council)
Tel: (337-439-5861) Fax: (337-436-8713) 1715 Common Street, Lake Charles, LA 70601-6135 Website: www.SLAC.org
Monroe Area
GO CARE (Greater Ouachita Coalition Providing AIDS Resources and Education)
Tel: (318-325-1092) Fax: (318-325-7793) 2915 DeSiard St., Monroe, LA 71201
New Orleans Area
NO/AIDS TASK FORCE
Tel: (504-821-2601) Fax: (504-821-2040) 2601 Tulane Ave., Ste. 500, New Orleans, LA 70119 Website: www.noaidstaskforce.org
CCFBA
Tel: (504-362-1066) Fax: (504-362-8837) 1417 Nunez Street, New Orleans, LA 70114
SOUTHEAST LA AHEC
Tel: (985-345-1119) Fax: (985-419-9486) 1302 J.W. Davis Drive, Hammond, LA 70403 Website: www.selahec.org
Children's Hospital FACES
Tel: (504-821-4611) Fax:(504-822-2084) 4640 South Carrollton Ave., Ste. 130, New Orleans, LA 70119
LEADING EDGE SERVICES
Tel: (504-468-6645) Fax: (504-468-6646) 3715 Williams Blvd., 100, Kenner, LA 70065
Northshore Area
VOLUNTEERS OF AMERICA IX
Tel: (985-674-0488) Fax: (985-674-0336) 823 Carroll Street, Suite B, Mandeville, LA 70448 Website: www.voagno.org
Shreveport Area
THE PHILADELPHIA CENTER
Tel: (318-222-6633) Fax: (318-222-6678) 2020 Centenary Boulevard, Shreveport, LA 71104 Website: www.philadelphiacenter.org
Click here for AIDSLaw of Louisiana
One of the easiest ways to take care of yourself as you age is to maintain good nutrition. Food provides you with many of the nutrients you need to maintain a healthy body and support your immune system. Nutritionists can help you make good food choices using the foods that you know or have heard of and by advising you about food safety. Many community-based organizations now offer HIV nutrition services.
An HIV nutritionist can help you:
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Prevent or treat wasting
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Monitor your lean muscle mass
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Manage cholesterol and triglycerides, blood sugar or liver enzymes
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Manage side effects
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Recommend vitamins and other supplements
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Clarify information and advise on herbal and alternative therapies
For a list of support groups near you, click here.
