Albany, NY – Today, members of the New York State Senate and Assembly gathered with the End AIDS NY Community Coalition to call for Governor Kathy Hochul, Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie to include language in the FY2026-27 Enacted Budget that would help end homelessness among extremely low-income New Yorkers living with HIV by expanding equitable access to an existing public assistance HIV Emergency Shelter Allowance program that is currently available only to residents of New York City.

Over many years New York City has worked with the NYS Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance (OTDA) to provide meaningful HIV Emergency Shelter Allowances to safely house public assistance eligible people with HIV experiencing homelessness or housing instability, and the NYS 30% HIV rent cap for persons who receive Shelter Allowances and have disability benefits to contribute towards rent.

Outside NYC, however, OTDA estimates that as many as 2,800 New Yorkers with HIV lack access to the HIV Emergency Shelter Allowance program and remain homeless or unstably housed as the result – the overwhelming majority from Black, Latino, and LGBTQ+ underserved communities, including an increasing number who are elderly – because their communities lack the resources to shoulder the standard 71% local share of these public assistance costs.

Championed by Assemblymember Harry B. Bronson and Senator April N.M. Baskin, the proposed FY26-27 budget language would expand equitable access to realistic HIV Emergency Shelter Allowances and the 30% HIV rent cap by providing 100% NYS reimbursement of these public assistance costs in local social districts outside NYC that opt to offer the benefit to their community members with HIV experiencing homelessness or housing instability. The proposal is not a mandate on counties but simply provides local districts the option by making it fiscally possible.

Significantly, OTDA’s expert analyses of unmet need and estimated costs to the State demonstrate that the additional NYS public assistance spending under the proposal can be easily managed within the current OTDA budget, requiring no new appropriation. Moreover, since stable housing has been shown to dramatically improve rates of viral load suppression that sustain optimal health and stop HIV transmission, this housing investment will generate off-setting savings in precious Medicaid dollars from avoidable crisis care and averted infections.

Five County Executives from heavily impacted parts of the State – Albany, Erie, Monroe, Onondaga, and Westchester, have written to the Governor that they are ready to opt-in to provide their residents safe housing instead of costly and inappropriate shelters.

Assemblymember Bronson and Senator Baskin were joined today by legislators, as well as members of the End AIDS New York Community Coalition, a statewide group of healthcare providers, human services organizations, and LGBTQ+ advocates committed to realizing the goals of New York’s Blueprint for Ending the HIV Epidemic for all New Yorkers.

In a letter dated April 27, 2026, the New York State AIDS Advisory Council also formally urged Albany’s leaders to include this expanded access to NYS HIV housing support in the FY26-27 Enacted Budget, noting that the “action is supported by New York State's Blueprint for Ending the Epidemic which recommends concrete action to ensure access to adequate, stable housing as an evidence-based HIV health intervention.”

Overwhelming evidence shows that safe, stable housing is a key determinant of effective HIV health outcomes, is necessary to reduce ongoing transmission of HIV, and is critical to address the stark and persistent HIV health inequities that prevent us from ending our New York State HIV epidemic in every community and population. We have made significant progress in our NYS Ending the Epidemic efforts, enabling us to “bend the curve” of the epidemic in 2019, decreasing HIV prevalence in NYS for the first time. However, it is troubling that NYS has now seen three years of slight increases in the number of new HIV diagnoses, after years of decline. Notably, since 2014 the number of new HIV diagnoses have decreased by 32% in NYC, but only 17% in the rest of the state, and HIV is increasingly concentrated in communities of poverty, disproportionately impacting Black, Latino, and LGBTQ+ New Yorkers.

Ongoing homelessness and housing instability among people living with HIV in communities outside NYC is fundamentally unfair, perpetuates HIV health inequities, undermines the State’s ability to end our HIV epidemic, and costs the State millions in avoidable Medicaid spending.

Correcting the inequity in access to safe, stable housing provides an important opportunity to expand housing opportunities for LGBTQ+ and Black and Latino New Yorkers disparately impacted by HIV and poverty, make history by becoming the first State in the nation to end homelessness among low-income households living with HIV, and save precious Medicaid resources by recognizing that housing is healthcare for people with HIV.

Every New Yorker with HIV experiencing homelessness or housing instability deserves equitable access to New York State’s program of life-saving HIV housing supports, regardless of which part of New York State they call home.

“I am proud to champion equitable access to HIV housing assistance in New York State,” said Assemblymember Harry B. Bronson. “There exist stark and persistent disparities between people living with HIV who have stable housing and those who do not. Presently, low-income people living with HIV in NYC have this support, which contributes to better outcomes and healthier lives, yet those in the rest of the state do not. Failure to address these inequities prevents us from reaching our goal to end the HIV epidemic in every New York community. As we face unprecedented challenges posed by actual and threatened federal funding cuts and attacks, there has never been a more important time for New York State to sustain and advance our efforts to end HIV as an epidemic.”

“Access to safe, stable housing should never depend on your ZIP code,” said Senator April N.M. Baskin. For too long, Upstate New Yorkers living with HIV have been denied the same basic protections that have helped thousands of residents in New York City maintain their health and dignity. I’m proud to champion this proposal to correct long-standing inequities by ensuring Upstate communities can afford to provide access to the same meaningful HIV Emergency Shelter Allowances and 30% rent cap for their residents. By expanding these protections statewide and providing the resources local districts need, we are advancing a more just, equitable New York and taking a meaningful step toward ending the HIV epidemic once and for all.”

“Every New Yorker living with HIV deserves access to safe, stable housing, no matter their zip code,” said Senator Erik Bottcher. “For too long, this lifesaving support has been effectively limited to New York City, leaving thousands of New Yorkers in communities across our state without the stability they need to stay healthy and thrive. Expanding the HIV Emergency Shelter Allowance program statewide and ensuring full reimbursement for local districts is a smart, equitable, and fiscally responsible step forward. We know that stable housing improves health outcomes, reduces transmission, and ultimately saves taxpayer dollars. If we are serious about ending the HIV epidemic in New York, we must close this gap and deliver the resources needed to support every community."

"Housing is health care," said Assemblymember Linda B. Rosenthal (D/WF - Manhattan), Chair of the Assembly Committee on Housing. "No matter where in the state one lives, a person being treated for HIV needs safe and stable housing to maintain their medication regimen, doctor visits and avoid costly emergency care. For years, New York City has seen the health benefits of providing people with housing through the HIV Emergency Shelter Allowance, but patients outside the City have been shut out. We have come a long way in the fight to end the HIV/AIDS epidemic in New York State, but we must recognize that a person's ability to access care must not be dependent on their zip code. Our final state budget must expand access to the HIV Emergency Shelter Allowance statewide."

“Access to safe, stable housing is not optional for people living with HIV, it is a public health necessity and a matter of equity. Yet too many New Yorkers are still excluded from the HIV Emergency Shelter Allowance simply because of where they live, leaving thousands without the support they need to stay housed and connected to care. Expanding equitable access to this program in the FY2027 Enacted Budget would be a critical step toward ending HIV-related homelessness and strengthening health outcomes across our state. I stand with advocates and legislative partners in urging Albany leadership to act now so that every New Yorker, regardless of zip code, can access the housing assistance they deserve,” said Assembly Member Jessica González-Rojas.

“Our HIV and LGBTQ communities are facing many-layered threats to Medicaid, systems of care, and Ryan White and other federal funding sources that have been fundamental to the U.S. and New York HIV responses – in addition to attacks on the essential rights of members of our community,” said Charles King, Chief Executive Officer at Housing Works, and Co-Chair of the NYS AIDS Advisory Council Ending the Epidemic Sub-Committee. “We urgently need to know that the Governor and the State are committed to sustained progress towards our Ending the Epidemic goals. We cannot end our State’s HIV epidemic while as many as 2,800 New Yorkers with HIV lack the safe housing that is essential to benefit from treatment that sustains health and stops new infections. It is time to ensure that every local social services district has the option to provide the meaningful HIV Emergency Shelter Allowances currently available only to people experiencing homelessness and housing insecurity in New York City.”

"Black, Latino/a, and LGBTQ+ New Yorkers continue to face disproportionate burdens at the intersection of HIV and housing instability, driven by longstanding structural inequities, discrimination, and gaps in access to care and safe, affordable housing,” said Shirley Torho, President and Chief Executive Officer of the National Black Health Leadership Commission on Health(Black Health). “These overlapping crises not only increase vulnerability to HIV transmission but also undermine treatment adherence and long-term health outcomes. Addressing these disparities requires sustained investment in housing-first approaches, culturally responsive care and services, and policies that confront systemic racism, stigma, and economic inequality head-on."

“At Evergreen Health in Buffalo we are grateful that we can count on the continued commitment from New York State’s leadership to sustain our Ending the Epidemic efforts,” said Mike Lee, Chief Operating Officer at Evergreen Health. “We call for the additional investments needed to end homelessness among people with HIV throughout the State. Our state has made historic progress, but much remains to be done to end this epidemic in every New York population and community.”

“We have long understood that housing is healthcare for people with HIV, and that without a safe, stable place to live it’s not possible to fully benefit from HIV treatment, sustain health, or prevent new infections,” said Perry Junjulas, Executive Director of the Albany Damien Center. “Continuing to deny this benefit in Albany and other communities outside NYC is fundamentally unfair, perpetuates HIV health inequities, undermines the State’s ability to end our HIV epidemic, and costs the State millions in avoidable Medicaid spending on crisis care and new HIV infections.”

In Rochester we are fully committed to ending the HIV epidemic," said Mary Beth Walker, Trillium Health’s Vice President of Marketing, Government Relations, and Public Relations. "New York State has long been a leader in HIV prevention and treatment, and we hope that the final enacted budget will include housing assistance for New Yorkers living with HIV no matter where in the State they call home. We work diligently at Trillium Health to house people with HIV because we see how crucial it is to their health and wellbeing, but despite best efforts we simply lack the resources to meet the real need. Access to meaningful HIV Emergency Shelter Allowances would be a game changer for our community.”

"Here in Syracuse and across Central New York, we see how sustained state leadership saves lives and strengthens communities,” said Lisa Alford, Chief Executive Officer at ACR Health. “We’re grateful that it appears core Ending the Epidemic funding will be sustained in the FY26-27 Enacted NYS budget, and we join our Onondaga County officials in their hope that equitable access to HIV housing assistance in the rest of the state outside NYC will be included as well. New York must reaffirm its commitment to our Ending the Epidemic efforts by investing in safe housing that will reach and support communities most impacted.”

"LGBTQ+ New Yorker continue to face repeated attacks from the federal government," said Amanda Babine of Equality New York." That is why we are calling on our New York State leadership to demonstrate their commitment to our community by stepping up to make sure that every low-income New Yorker with HIV has a safe place to live so that they can benefit from treatment and thrive."