Saturday, April 5, 2025
4/5/2025
Ryan White Part C Outpatient EIS Program - Project Title: FY2025 Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program Part C Early Intervention Services Program: Existing Geographic Service Areas Applicant Organization Name: HopeHealth, Inc. Address: 600 East Palmetto Street Florence, SC 29506-2851 Project Director Name: Carl Humphries, CEO Contact Phone Numbers (VOICE): 843-656-0345 FAX: 843-667-1362 E-Mail Address: chumphries@hope-health.org Web Site Address, if applicable: www.hope-health.org List all grant program funds requested in the application: $645,033 Funding preference: Increased Burden; Rural Areas; Underserved Summary of Application. HopeHealth, Inc. (HH) is a federally qualified community health center (FQHC) and AIDS Service Organization (ASO) based in Florence, South Carolina (SC) and serving communities across the Pee Dee, Coastal Plain, and Low Country regions. HH was founded as a grassroots HIV/AIDS support organization in 1991 in the living room of a woman whose two adult children had tested positive for HIV. What began as a support group for those most affected by HIV, quickly grew in response to community need. In 1997, the organization obtained federal funding as a Ryan White (RW) Part C provider. In 2007, HH obtained designation as a HRSA Section 330 FQHC. Today, HH is one of the largest providers for people with HIV (PWH) in the state. The health center receives RW Part C funding to provide Early Intervention Services (EIS) in Dillon, Florence and Marion counties, SC, serving 1,164 Part C patients in 2023 (RSR, 2023). In addition, HH receives RW Part B funding through SC DHEC to serve a 12-county area. In accordance with the Ending the HIV Epidemic initiative, HH’s Part C EIS program activities strive to decrease transmission and improve health outcomes for PWH and reduce HIV-related health disparities and health inequities by focusing on the priority strategies of Diagnose, Treat, Prevent, and Respond. Continuation of Part C EIS program funding will ensure that HH can continue providing convenient and accessible comprehensive primary care to low-income PWH in this region, ensuring access to the essential HIV care and treatment and support services needed to help them achieve viral suppression. HH anticipates serving 1,200 EIS users in the upcoming year. Service Area and Needs. The Part C service area includes Dillon, Florence and Marion counties, SC. As of December 2022, there were 1,173 PWH in the service area, a 3.3% increase since 2020. There were 542 people, or 46.6%, living with HIV-non-AIDS, while 53.4% (622) were people living with AIDS. The number of people newly diagnosed with HIV has increased slightly, with 36 new diagnoses in 2022 compared to 31 in 2020, while the number people of newly diagnosed with AIDS also increased slightly from 8 in 2020 to 11 in 2022. Continued access to the EIS services offered at HH may help limit the transmission of HIV in the community and improve outcomes for PWH, as well as slow the progression of the disease among those who are HIV positive. Proposed Project, including Key Services, Amount Requested, and Target Populations. HH requests RW Part C funding to continue providing Part C services targeting at-risk and PWH in their progression along the HIV Care Continuum. Part C-funded services will include: comprehensive, culturally relevant primary HIV medical care and infectious disease services; medical case management; treatment adherence services; mental health screening and treatment; substance use disorder services and referral for treatment; oral health services; nutritional screening; and linkages to referral services such as specialty care. In 2023, the majority (85.5%) of the RW patients served by HH were African American. Many (60.0%) of HIV/AIDS patients report contracting the disease through heterosexual contact, while 34.1% have transmission attributed to MSM (RSR).
HHS’ Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System (TAGGS) website provides access to detailed descriptions of grants, loans, aggregated direct payments and other types of financial assistance awarded by the HHS Operating Divisions (OPDIVs) and the Office of the Secretary Staff Divisions (STAFFDIVs).