The Health Resources and Services Administration, HIV/AIDS Bureau (HRSA/HAB) funds the Ryan White Part A programs in Columbus and Cleveland and the Ryan White Part B program for the state of Ohio. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention (CDC/DHAP) funds HIV prevention programming through the Ohio Department of Health. For the first time, HRSA and CDC have required their respective grantees to work together on the creation of a 5-year plan to address the needs, gaps, and barriers to HIV Prevention and Care within the state. Justification for this project is found in the CDC and HRSA guidance.

For the past year, planners from across Ohio have met with clients, HIV professionals, and interested others in the preparation of the Ohio HIV Prevention and Care Integrated Plan, 2017-2021. Planners do not expect feedback from CDC/HRSA on the scope-of-work outlined in the document until sometime in Spring 2017, but work has already begun on the plan, as submitted.

The Plan includes 8 major goals and 2 sub-goals. Workgroups have been formed to address each of the goals. If you are interested in learning more or participating in one of the workgroups, please email HCS@odh.ohio.gov and indicate the Integrated Plan Goal of interest to you in the subject line of your email. A summary of the goals is included for your reference below: 

• Goal 1: Develop and Implement Data to Care. Data to Care is a new public health prevention strategy that aims to use HIV surveillance data to identify HIV-diagnosed individuals who are not in care. Link to CDC Data to Care description 

• Goal 1A: Create an Ohio Care Continuum. The goal is to secure 95% complete CD4 and viral load data to enable planners to better visualize the HIV epidemic in Ohio and identify those who are not in care, not receiving medication, or who have not been able to get their virus suppressed using medication. Click here for the The National HIV Care Continuum information.

• Goal 2: Improve the Implementation of Linkage to Care. Ohio has a need for an improved linkage to care protocol. The strategies are intended to improve how to assess current linkage to care practices, identify areas of improvement, and develop a new protocol that will also address strategies for reengagement in care.

• Goal 3: Increase the Availability of Targeted HIV Testing. The need for more targeted testing was identified in several care‐oriented needs assessments as well as the statewide and regional integrated plan meetings to assess needs, gaps and barriers. The strategies are intended to improve how to assess where testing needs to be occurring to increase the overall positivity rates for the activity and, ultimately, to bring positive individuals to care as early as possible in the course of their disease.

• Goal 4: Ensure the Statewide Availability of Pre‐exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP). There is uneven knowledge of and access to PrEP programs across Ohio. The availability of PrEP is often limited to the major metropolitan areas. ODH will work towards developing a directory of PrEP providers and supporting PrEP implementation across the state to minimize geographical disparities.

• Goal 5: Address Housing Needs for PLWHA in Ohio. Concerns about housing include providing assistance with paying for housing as well as the availability of safe housing. Housing is an activity that other entities provide without HIV‐specificity and it is important to take the lessons they have learned to revisit potential opportunities for collaboration with them in concert with them to ensure housing in all regions of the state where there is a need.

• Goal 6: Continue and expand the Ryan White All‐Parts Statewide Quality Management Program. Ryan White Parts in Ohio have a long‐standing record of working collaboratively with each other and with the National Quality Center to identify and follow‐through on statewide quality management objectives. The Integrated Planning process gave a key opportunity to formalize the continuation and expansion of these activities to ensure that prior collaborative efforts may be built upon in assessing Ohio’s response to HIV.

• Goals 7 and 8: Target Health Inequities. A review of Ohio’s testing, treatment, care and surveillance data demonstrates the disproportionate impact of HIV on communities of color and young men who have sex with other men. An expansion of testing and linkage to care efforts to engage persons of color and other high risk groups disproportionately diagnosed and at increased risk for acquiring HIV infection is necessary to reduce overall new infections in Ohio.

Last update 08/07/18