Vancouver/Richmond Health Board Action Plan to Combat HIV/AIDS in the Downtown Eastside - For Immediate Release

Press release by the Vancouver/Richmond Health Board (VRHB) announcing its intention to allocate 3.7 million dollars to implement a new action plan to address HIV/AIDS in the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver. The Board will increase the number of needle exchange sites; increase community outreach services; institute an epidemiology surveillance committee; and address determinants of health such as poverty, housing and transportation. The Board's decision to increase funding is in response the HIV/AIDS epidemic being declared a public health crisis in Sept. 1997.