An unnamed Louisiana Department of Health (LDH) presenter told the House Resolution 3 to 2 Task Force on Oct. 8 that the state’s program to prevent and treat incurable sexually transmitted infections is funded almost entirely by federal grants and program income, but that inflation and the end of temporary ARPA funds have reduced the program’s purchasing power.

The presenter said the program’s current annual budget is about $106,000,000 and that “the majority of this funding, well, all of the funding, let me be clear, is either a federal grant or it is program income.” The presenter added: “we are really operating with significantly less purchasing power currently than we have even going back to 2010.”

The presentation summarized trends for HIV and hepatitis B and C, explained which conditions Louisiana’s sanitary code designates as reportable, and reviewed prevention programs, community contractors, and correctional screening projects. The presenter said New Orleans and Baton Rouge have seen sharp reductions in new HIV diagnoses after receiving Ending the HIV Epidemic (EHE) grant funding targeted to those jurisdictions, while the rest of the state has seen flatter progress.

Why it matters: task force members pressed LDH staff on where limited state resources could have the greatest impact, including expanded screening and treatment in local jails, broader prevention campaigns, and the potential scaling of incentive programs that have driven viral suppression among people with HIV.

Key points from LDH’s presentation

- Funding: LDH reported roughly half of the program’s dollars come from federal grants (CDC cooperative agreements, HRSA/Ryan White funds and other federal sources) and roughly half from program income, including insurance billing and pharmaceutical rebates tied to the Ryan White program.

- Purchasing power: inflation-adjusted figures show flat or declining real funding since 2010; an ARPA-supported workforce boost in 2020–21 briefly increased capacity but those funds were rescinded after two years, the presenter said.

- HIV/Hepatitis trends: LDH reported continuing declines in HIV diagnoses and AIDS cases since the 2010s, with notable progress in New Orleans and Baton Rouge tied to concentrated EHE funding. Chronic hepatitis B diagnoses were described as relatively steady, with most diagnoses in older age groups.

- Correctional settings: LDH said the state has screened people entering Department of Corrections (DOC) facilities since about 2013 and added release screening around 2018. Screening of DOC inmates in local jails has been conducted where resources permit; LDH estimated test supply costs at about "$40 a person" for HIV, syphilis, hepatitis C and hepatitis B. LDH also estimated it would cost roughly $14,000,000 to treat all people with hepatitis C in local jails, and noted DOC has paid for hepatitis C treatment in state facilities.

- Prevention and services: LDH described a network of contracted community-based organizations and parish health units that provide testing, linkage to care, and prevention materials. The presenter said the state distributes more than 4,500,000 condoms annually and contracts with clinics that provide PrEP, PEP and comprehensive sexually transmitted infection screening.

- Evidence-based programs: LDH highlighted a financial-incentive program (described in the presentation as Health Models) started as a 2013 demonstration project that the presenter said contributed to improved viral suppression and narrowed racial disparities among people with HIV. LDH said the program provides modest annual incentives (a person suppressed for a year receives less than $400) and has produced measurable improvements in care retention.

Questions and follow-ups

Task force members asked for more detail on local jail screening capacity, costs to parishes of treating identified infections, and possibilities for expanding prevention education in schools when state and federal funding are constrained. LDH staff said some local jails have negotiated additional funding with their parishes or city governments, and several — including Caddo, Lafayette, Jefferson and Orleans — have active screening or treatment arrangements.

LDH told the task force it lacks statewide funding to screen and treat people in all approximately 100 local jails, and that while DOC-funded treatment programs have cured thousands of people of hepatitis C in state facilities, expansion to local jails is limited by payer sources and contracting arrangements.

Task force direction and next steps

Members agreed by consensus to invite the Louisiana Public Health Institute (LPHI) to present findings from a 2018 parent survey and related adolescent-health work at the next meeting. LDH also offered to provide more granular Medicaid and billing codes information for counseling and for PrEP-related services at a future meeting.

Votes at a glance

- Approval of Sept. 10 minutes: Motion to accept by Tom Deets; second by Susan DuPont. Approved by consensus (no recorded opposed or abstentions).

- Adjournment: Motion by Representative Annie Spell; second by Zach Daniels. Meeting adjourned at 3:06 p.m.

What the task force heard and did not decide

LDH presented data, operational details, and program outcomes; there were no new statutes, funding allocations or regulatory changes adopted at the Oct. 8 meeting. The task force requested additional follow-up information, asked LDH to supply slides and details, and voted (consensus) to invite LPHI to present at the next meeting. Members discussed but did not vote on policy options such as expanded jail treatment funding, statewide syringe service programs, or statutory changes regarding reportable conditions.

Background and context

LDH noted that federal proposals for fiscal year 2026 could reduce some federal HIV funding streams under discussion nationally; as of the Oct. 8 meeting, LDH said no state grant funding had yet been cut but that the agency was monitoring federal budget negotiations. The presenter repeatedly emphasized that while evidence-based prevention and treatment tools exist (PrEP/PEP, long-acting injectables, hepatitis C curative therapy, partner services, and incentive programs), implementing them more broadly across a geographically diffuse epidemic requires more resources.

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