FY 2021 ending the HIV epidemic - primary care HIV prevention - mountain comprehensive health corporation (mchc) is an fqhc (grant number: H80CS00367) with its headquarters and all satellite clinics…

FY 2021 ending the HIV epidemic - primary care HIV prevention - mountain comprehensive health corporation (mchc) is an fqhc (grant number: H80CS00367) with its headquarters and all satellite clinics located in the mountains of eastern kentucky. Mchc is applying for this primary care HIV prevention grant because IT is determined to help eradicate this disease from the united states, by doing its part to test, prevent, diagnose and treat all mchc patients who are a part of the targeted and/or high-risk groups. Mchc will achieve these goals by closely following the biden administration's national HIV/aids strategy and the requirements for this funding opportunity by achieving the following objectives: increase the number of patients counseled and tested for HIV mchc will begin the "testing" phase of the project immediately by starting to test everyone in the 13 to 65 age group for HIV along with regular blood work. Of course there will be notification of this test and the ability to OPT out by signing a form. Grant funds will be used to make this a zero cost test to the patients after the respective insurance providers pick up their part of the bill. DR. Fares khater, mchc's infectious disease specialist, maintains that increased testing will allow mchc to discover unreported cases among the target groups and especially in the high-risk group. Mchc performed a combined total of 6,954 HIV tests in calendar years 2019 and 2020. After implementing all the procedures necessary to meet the goals of this grant, mchc plans to increase the number of tests each year, for a grand total of approximately 20,000 HIV tests administered over the course of the grant period. Increase the number of patients prescribed prep DR. Khater says that all patients who fall into one of the high-risk groups, which include behavioral health patients and substance use disorder patients, could immediately be started on prep. Grant funds will help make this a zero cost activity for patients after all insurance coverage and all AV ailable prep subsidy program funding is exhausted. This increase in the number of patients prescribed prep should dramatically decrease the rate of HIV cases in the area by putting the preventive medicine into the hands of the people most likely to contract the disease. These activities will make great strides toward achieving goal 1 of the biden administration's national HIV/aids strategy, which is to "prevent new HIV infections". Increase the number of patients linked to HIV care and treatment within 30 days of diagnosis mchc is fortunate to have its own behavioral health counselors and an infectious disease specialist in-house. This will allow treatment and supportive therapy to begin immediately upon a diagnosis of HIV, sometimes even on the same day. Linking to care and treatment within 30 days of diagnosis will be an easy goal to achieve since mchc already has all the necessary players under the same roof. In order to break down one of the primary barriers to care in the mchc service area, telehealth can be utilized for both treatment and therapy in situations where a patient would have a long drive to see DR. Khater in person. Goal 2 of the biden administration's national HIV/aids strategy, "improve HIV-related health outcomes of people with HIV" will be met here, with in-person or electronic access to treatment immediately upon diagnosis. Project will focus on the targeted geographic locations with the entire state of kentucky being one of the targeted geographic locations for this grant, mchc will have no problem focusing its efforts on the target area. Mchc has been providing primary health care services in eastern kentucky since 1971. This fqhc now serves patients with eleven community health centers and fourteen school based clinics located in letcher, perry, harlan, owsley, pike, knott and bell counties. Mchc's primary service includes 20 kentucky counties and IT is uniquely situated to provide HIV