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PROPOSED RESOLUTION
RECOGNIZING DECEMBER 1ST AS WORLD AIDS DAY IN COOK COUNTY
WHEREAS, launched in 1988, World AIDS Day takes place on December 1st each year, and is an opportunity for people worldwide to unite in the fight against HIV, to show support for people living with HIV, and to commemorate those who have died from an AIDS-related illness; and
WHEREAS, World AIDS Day is important because it reminds the public and government that HIV has not gone away, and that there is still a vital need to raise money, increase awareness, fight prejudice and improve education; and
WHEREAS, this government recognizes the LGBTQ community's efforts for recognition by government leaders of the devastation and stigma caused by this disease within their community and beyond; and
WHEREAS, more than 40,000 people in Illinois live with HIV or AIDS and more than half of those individuals reside in Chicago, and in 2018, there were 25,198 people living with HIV in Cook County; and
WHEREAS, this year's timely theme for World AIDS Day is "Ending the HIV/AIDS Epidemic: Resilience & Impact"; and
WHEREAS, Getting to Zero Illinois is a state-wide initiative to end the HIV epidemic in the state by 2030, a goal shared by Cook County Government and Cook County Health, which is one of the largest providers of HIV/AIDS care in the Midwest; and
WHEREAS, CCH's Ruth M. Rothstein CORE Center cares for and treats more than 10,000 patients annually with HIV/AIDS and other infectious diseases, offering a wide array of primary and specialty care, education and social support service, regardless of ability to pay; and
WHEREAS, just as we've seen how health care disparities and the social determinants of health among minority communities has lead to adverse outcomes during the Covid-19 pandemic, the disproportionate impact of HIV on racial and ethnic minorities has been predictably similar, with the CDC reporting that in 2018, of 37,968 total HIV diagnoses in the U.S. and 6 Dependent Areas...
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