The Florida Department of Health’s HIV/AIDS Section works in conjunction with federal and statewide partners to plan for Florida’s HIV surveillance, care, and prevention needs. Our statewide planning body, the Florida Comprehensive Planning Network (FCPN), meets regularly to discuss progress toward ending HIV transmission and reducing HIV-related deaths.
Florida’s Plan to Eliminate HIV Transmission and Reduce HIV-Related Deaths
These data have served as the foundation for the development of Florida’s Integrated HIV Prevention and Care Plan for 2022-2026.
Over the next five years, the state’s HIV planning body, Florida Coordinated Planning Network, along with the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program Part A partners, is determined to focus on priority populations to reduce the impact of HIV.
Florida has adopted a comprehensive strategic approach to prevent HIV transmission and strengthen patient care activities.
Four Key Components
1
Implement routine HIV and STI screening in health care settings and priority testing in non-health care settings
2
Provide rapid access to treatment and ensure retention in care
3
Improve and promote access to antiretroviral PrEP and nPEP
4
Increase HIV awareness and community response by outreach, engagement, and messaging
1. Implement Routine Testing
Everyone between the ages of 13 and 64 should have an HIV test in their lifetime. Those with ongoing risks should be tested more frequently, as should pregnant women, who should be tested in their first and third trimester.
- Talk with your health care provider or locate a testing site near you
- Learn about consent requirements and model protocols
2. Provide Rapid Access to Treatment and Ensure Retention in Care
People living with HIV who take antiretroviral medication as prescribed and achieve and maintain an undetectable viral load cannot transmit HIV to their sexual partners.
The Florida Department of Health’s program helps newly diagnosed people or those returning to care by providing linkage to a clinician who can provide access to antiretroviral medications, medical assessments, and linkage to case management to help with accessing community resources.
Learn more about HIV medical and support services in your area by contacting the Florida AIDS Hotline.
- In English: 800-FLA-AIDS or 800-352-2437
- En Espanol: 800-545-SIDA
- In Creole: 800-AIDS-101
3. Improve Access to PrEP and nPEP
PrEP and PEP are both part of a comprehensive HIV prevention strategy. PrEP is a preventative tool for people at risk of acquiring HIV. PEP is a stopgap measure for people who have had a potential HIV exposure. Both involve using antiretroviral medications to reduce the risk of HIV transmission to HIV-negative individuals.
Learn more about PrEP and PEP
4. Increase HIV Awareness and Community Response
Knowledge and understanding of HIV, prevention strategies, and available resources to live healthy are critical to reducing HIV in Florida. The Florida Department of Health offers numerous HIV prevention strategies to benefit the health of Florida’s communities.
Florida has two AIDS education and training centers, which provide comprehensive resources for health care providers in the treatment and prevention of HIV:
Ending the Epidemic
Florida’s Unified Ending the Epidemic Plan represents the state as a whole and the counties identified as Phase 1 jurisdictions. This plan is a “living” document that will change and grow as implementation begins.
About Ending the HIV Epidemic
“Ending the HIV Epidemic: A Plan for America,” or EHE for short, was announced during the February 2019 State of the Union Address. The goal of the initiative is to reduce new HIV infections by 75 percent in the next five years and by 90% by 2030.
EHE centers around a phased approach to infusing resources to the places that need them most. The first phase of the initiative focuses on the areas where the HIV burden is the highest. Seven of these areas are counties in Florida: Broward, Duval, Hillsborough, Miami-Dade, Orange, Palm Beach, and Pinellas.
Intervention
High-Impact Prevention (HIP) Provider Map
The Florida Department of Health funds community-based organizations and local county health departments to implement evidence-based HIV prevention interventions. Funded organizations implement a wide variety of high-impact prevention interventions and strategies that include HIV testing and prevention interventions for people with HIV and high-risk negative persons.
Interventions for People with HIV
A major objective is to improve health outcomes for people with HIV by focusing on interventions along the HIV continuum of care. The purpose of HIV prevention interventions for those with HIV/AIDS is to promote testing, linkage, and retention and re-engagement into care; promote medication adherence and viral suppression; prevent the transmission of HIV; and provide support. Another objective is to incorporate HIV prevention into both private and public medical settings.
Interventions for High-Risk Negatives
Prevention of HIV among high-risk negative persons is a priority for the HIV Prevention Program. High-risk behaviors include having unprotected sex and sharing needles used to inject drugs of any kind.
Prevention among high-risk negative persons includes biomedical interventions, like PrEP and nPEP, and behavioral interventions. Behavioral interventions reduce risk behaviors that increase the likelihood that someone will acquire HIV.
RW Part B Service Delivery Project
As the recipient of federal Ryan White Part B funding, the HIV/AIDS Section is in the process of improving the statewide service delivery model. We share periodic update emails to keep those who are interested in this process informed. These updates include recent frequently asked questions (FAQs), which we collect and archive here.
If you are interested in subscribing to our update emails, or have questions related to the Ryan White Part B service delivery project in general, please email DiseaseControl@FLhealth.gov. Your questions may show up in a future FAQ.
Why is Florida looking to change its Ryan White Part B service delivery model?
The federal agency that provides funding and oversight for the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program, the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), has found Florida’s current methods of service delivery to be out of compliance with their requirements.
Where did the four service delivery options currently being considered come from?
After receiving HRSA’s findings in 2021, the HIV/AIDS Section contracted with Mercer Government Human Services Consulting to assess Ryan White Part B service delivery in Florida. The four models suggested as part of their assessment are the models currently under consideration.
Mercer’s suggestion of these four models—consortia, consortia-lead agency hybrid, statewide enterprise, and statewide fiduciary agent—is based on information provided by HRSA.
Does the statewide fiduciary agent model meet HRSA’s requirements?
Yes, when done correctly. HRSA includes fiduciary agent as a viable subrecipient model in their Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program Part B Manual. They define a fiduciary agent as “an entity with which the state/territory establishes a legal agreement to do one or more of the following: manage grant funds; manage procurement processes; manage payment of invoices; ensure funds are used for allowable purposes and in accordance with applicable legislative, regulatory, and programmatic requirements; and/or execute award requirements related to non-compliance.”
The Program Manual also says that fiduciary agents “typically conduct fiscal activities on behalf of the recipient in an administrative capacity and do not provide direct services to people with HIV or have a direct relationship with direct service providers. In addition, fiduciary agents are typically not involved in programmatic decision-making (e.g., planning, priority-setting, eligibility determination).”
Do other states employ a fiduciary agent model for Ryan White service delivery?
Yes, several—though not all of them for Part B services. Maine, New York, and Pennsylvania are among the states that use a fiduciary agent model for Ryan White services for at least one part.
Under a statewide fiduciary agent model, what role would the statewide planning body play?
A fiduciary agent is purely an administrative role that typically wouldn’t conduct needs assessments or perform priority setting for resource allocation, though they would aid with providing data for these activities. Our statewide planning body will continue to be vital to these and other activities.
How will positions be impacted by the transition to a fiduciary agent?
We are currently conducting a full analysis of the funding sources that will be impacted by the model transition. As information becomes available, we will include it in updates and area calls.
Will there be an implementation plan for the fiduciary agent?
Yes, we are currently working on developing a detailed implementation plan, which we look forward to sharing. The simplified version is that a procurement process will be completed, which will end with the selection of a vendor to serve as the statewide fiduciary agent. There will be a period of overlap to transition from the current model to the new model to ensure no lapse in client services. Policies will be written and/or adjusted as needed to ensure all needs are met. The endpoint of implementation will be when the current model is no longer maintained and we are fully transitioned to a fiduciary-only model statewide.