"If anything, the evidence suggests that the state should spend a lot more on HIV prevention than its $192 million outlay from 2013, says Dr. John Carlo, CEO of AIDS Arms. "You pay a dollar now, you save two dollars in the future," Carlo says. But if the Texas Legislature based its decisions on evidence, then it wouldn't be the Texas Legislature. Rather than increase the $191.4 million in HIV/AIDS prevention proposed for each of the two years covered by the 2016-17 biennial budget, The Texas House actually voted to cut HIV prevention funding by $3 million in the preliminary, two-year budget it passed in the wee hours of Wednesday morning. The money will instead be used to fund abstinence education, which is lovely in theory but, as a mountain of evidence shows, has yet to convince teenagers to stop having sex." - Jessie

"Carlo, the AIDS Arms CEO, worries about the epidemiological impact that even a small cut to prevention funds will have. Texas has managed to keep the number of new cases in check, but the HIV virus is still prevalent. If lawmakers cripple the public health response to the epidemic, Carlo worries that there will be an explosion in the number of HIV cases. He thinks an HIV outbreak like the one currently taking place in rural Indiana could very easily strike Texas, particularly if prevention funding is cut. Carlo also worries that a small budget cut could have a cascading effect if it triggers the federal government to exclude Texas from its federal HIV grant programs. The agreements governing federal HIV programs require "maintenance of effort" (i.e. a steady funding stream) from the state in order for it to be eligible for most federal HIV money. Since federal dollars make up about two-thirds of the state's $192 million 2013 budget, that would be catastrophic." - Jessie

"The Senate still has to pass its budget and the two have to be reconciled, so there's till time to restore HIV prevention funding and with it, perhaps, a dose of sanity." - Jessie

very long odds on sanity - Greg GuitarBuster

this is ANOTHER reason why no sane person should ever vote Republican! - Big Joe Silenced

^^^ exactly what Joe said. Even recently there have been several stories about Republican mismanagement without even touching their radical agenda, eg. Patrick says the state hasn't been maintaining public buildings and an Abbott appointed panel rips the Health and Human Services leadership...so who was in charge of those agencies for the past 20 years. - Greg GuitarBuster