Monkeypox: LA County Failing Gay Men ‘Again,’ Says AHF LA Times Ad

In a new Los Angeles Times ad (Sunday, July 31), AHF calls out LA County officials as monkeypox cases continue to increase especially among gay men and a state of emergency has yet to be declared

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--AHF will run a full-page, full-color advocacy ad targeting Los Angeles County Public Health officials due to their lackluster response to the ongoing outbreak of monkeypox, and more specifically, the higher rates of infections being identified among gay men. The ad, headlined “LA County Fails Gay Men AGAIN” invokes how L.A. County officials failed gay men on its AIDS response at the start of that epidemic over 40 years ago are once again not taking enough appropriate steps on monkeypox to ensure the public’s safety.

Like 40 years ago during the earliest days of the AIDS crisis, gay men were forced to advocate for themselves as LA County chose bureaucracy over proper healthcare. According to LA County Public Health, to date there are 306 confirmed monkeypox cases where 99% are among males and 90% of those cases are within the LGBTQ+ community. Despite these numbers continuing to grow, Los Angeles city and county officials have remained silent and still have not declared a state of emergency. In addition, access to monkeypox vaccines continue to be limited.

“The outbreak of monkeypox in LA County is only getting worse, and it seems as though county officials are turning a blind eye. When will they learn?” said Michael Weinstein president of AHF. “During the early days of the AIDS crisis, gay men were adversely affected and ultimately forced to suffer because of our public health department choosing profit over people. Now, 40 years later, it seems gay men are once again faced with the same reality.”

AHF’s LA Times ad is summed up with a powerful statement that reads “protecting public health is a sacred trust.”

AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), the largest global AIDS organization, currently provides medical care and/or services to over 1.6 million individuals in 45 countries worldwide in the US, Africa, Latin America/Caribbean, the Asia/Pacific Region and Eastern Europe. To learn more about AHF, please visit our website: www.aidshealth.org, find us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/aidshealth, follow us @aidshealthcare or subscribe to our AHF podcast “AHFter Hours.”