Meeting of the
HIV HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES PLANNING COUNCIL
OF NEW YORK
Thursday, May 28, 2026
3:05-4:15pm
By Zoom Videoconference
MINUTES
Members Present: D. Klotz (Governmental Co-chair), D. Martin (Community Co-chair), B. Fields (Finance Officer), G. Angelopoulos, R. Babakhanian, V. Bell, J. Benitez, A. Betancourt, R. Brown, M. Caponi, P. Carr, L. Cyrus, J. Edwards, R. Ford, L. Francis, M. Gilborn, J. Goldenbridge, C. Gomez, C. Graham, S. Hemraj, R. Henderson, E. Kaywin, K. Laveille, J. Louis, DDS, M. Maia Soares, L. F. Molano, MD, B. Montes, J, Natt, C. Nuñez, J. Palmer, J. Robles, M. Rodriguez, L. Sabashvili, S. Safo, MD, J. Schoepp, M. Sedlacek, PhD, S. Spiegler (for G. Plummer, ex-officio), S. Stallings, D. Tider, G. Ty, L. Worrell
Members Absent: M. Bacon, M. Baney, G. Bruckno, V. Decamps, J. Dudley, N. Martin, J. Sanchez, S. Stallings, A. Tomlin
Staff Present: DOHMH: A. Howard, MD, MS, M. Navejas, D. Saab, A. Omeyoma, A. Eppinger-Meiering, J. Acosta, S. Kramer, J. Jaramillo, P. Padgen, H. K. Muk; Public Health Solutions: B. Silver, A. Shahi, G. Barclay; CHAIN: A. Aidala
Agenda Item #1: Welcome/Introductions/Minutes
Mr. Martin and Mr. Klotz opened the meeting followed by introductions and a roll call and a moment of silence. The minutes of the April 23, 2026 meeting were approved with no changes.
Dr. Howard greeted the Council, praising their work and expressing her commitment to supporting the Council’s community planning process. She mentioned recent and upcoming Council initiatives and upcoming challenges, stressing her enthusiasm for partnering with the Council to support the best care and services for people with HIV in NYC and Tri-County.
Agenda Item #2: Public Comment, Part I
Ms. Saab invited Council members to participate in the upcoming DOHMH Aging & HIV Workgroup webinar.
Mr. Hemraj stressed the importance of the AIDS Institute updating their clinical guidelines for HIV care.
Mr. Najevas invited Council members to attend next week’s Long Term Survivors Event, at which Mr. Martin will be a panelist.
Dr. Safo invited Council members to attend a webinar on health equity, particularly regarding HIV in the Black and Hispanic community. Also, in a response to a question, Dr. Howard noted that DOHMH sexual health clinics are gearing up for an uptick in utilization during the World Cup, Pride and other events this summer.
Mr. Maia invited Council members to an upcoming ACT-UP advocacy training.
Agenda Item #3: Recipient Report
Ms. Eppinger-Meiering reported on HIV Vaccine Awareness and Asian-American HIV Awareness Days.She reminded the Council that registration is still open for the 2026 National Ryan White Conference (hybrid in-person in Washington, DC and virtual). On May 16th, the CDC released a new Medical Monitoring Project (MMP) data report detailing the behavioral and clinical characteristics of persons diagnosed with HIV between June 2023 and May 2024. HRSA launched the HIV Resource Hub, previously known as Target HIV, which provides access to mission-critical resources for Ryan White and EHE programs.
The final Ryan White Part A (RWPA) notice of GY 2026 grant award was received. As reported by email to the Council, the EMA received $89,010,996, a slight reduction from the previous year. The Quality Management and Program Implementation Unit (QMPI) continues to plan events for subrecipients and participating consumers to engage with one another and connect to learn more about RWPA program services in the NY EMA. The planning committee for the Annual Provider Meeting has started coordination on this year’s virtual session, to take place in late July. The meeting will feature program updates, discussion on priorities, and a featured presentation by the Council.
On June 2nd, DOHMH is hosting Career Power Source, to provide career readiness tools and connections for PWH seeking employment. On June 3rd, DOHMH is hosting an event to commemorate Long Term HIV Survivors Day. Other upcoming DOHMH events include various Pride events and a long-acting injectable e-learning series.
Agenda Item #4: GY 2025 4th Quarter Closeout Report
Mr. Fields introduced the GY 2025 4th quarter closeout report, noting that underspending at the end of the grant year is the lowest since before COVID. The bottom line is that only $739,491 is left over for use as carryover in the current year. The Recipient did an excellent job reprogramming funds to overperforming programs to absorb underspending during the year.
Ms. Plummer reviewed the details of the report. Virtually all service categories were fully spent. ADAP received significant enhancements through reprogramming. One NYC category with significant underspending is Emergency Financial Assistance (EFA), because the program was preparing for the transition of the new program rebid in NYC. In Tri-County, Early Intervention Services was mostly unspent because the program ended its contract. The Tri-County Steering Committee and Planning Council voted to reallocate those funds to Food & Nutrition Services. The Recipient is still in the process of finalizing the closeout and will have the final carryover amount once the Federal Financial Report (FFR) is submitted to HRSA (due to HRSA May 29). The final carryover amount will be reported in time for the June 8th PSRA meeting where the Committee will develop a plan for the use of those funds.
Mr. Babakhanian expressed his hope that the underspending in EFA will be reduced in the current year now that there are separate programs in NYC and Tri-County. Mr. Carr added that the Tri-County provider was able to serve NYC residents during the transition.
Agenda Item #5: Concurrence with the 2027-32 Statewide Integrated HIV Prevention and Care Plan
Ms. Hagos and Mr. Laveille recapped the overview of the Statewide Integrated HIV Prevention and Care Plan (IP), which is required by HRSA and CDC every five years. As explained to the Council in March, the IP aligns prevention and care into one coordinated strategy; established shared goals, priorities, and measurable outcomes; focuses resources on populations and communities most impacted; and strengthens coordination across programs, providers, and planning bodies. An outline of the plan was described, along with the process for incorporating community input. A summary of the feedback and updates to the strategies for implementing the IP were described (including feedback received from the Council at its March 26th meeting). Over 94% of respondents to a statewide survey agreed that the IP’s strategies reflect the needs of PWH. Examples of updated strategies based on community feedback were given (e.g., build stronger connections with urgent care centers, promote health literacy, promote uptake of injectable PrEP).
Council members praised the thorough and inclusive efforts to incorporate community feedback. Mr. Palmer suggested that references to “bi-lingual” strategies should be changed to “multi-lingual”. Mr. Fields added that there should be a stronger emphasis on HIV prevention.
A motion was made and seconded to concur with the 2027-32 Statewide Integrated HIV Prevention and Care Plan. The motion was adopted 35Y-0N.
Agenda Item #6: Review of Remaining Council Busines
Mr. Klotz reviewed the remaining tasks for the Council’s planning cycle. In June, the PSRA Committee and the Council will approve a plan for the use of GY 2025 carryover funds. The Executive Committee and full Council will develop and approve the annual Assessment of the Administrative Mechanism. In July, PSRA and the Council will approve a spending request for the GY 2027 RWPA grant application. The Council will conduct elections for community co-chair and finance officer. The Executive Committee will approve the Rules & Membership Committee’s proposed slate of candidates for appointment to the Council. Finally, the annual member recognition event will take place on July 31st in Riverbank State Park in Harlem.
Agenda Item #7: Public Comment, Part II
Mr. Schoepp inquired into the status of consumers incentives.
Ms. Gomez invited Council members to a virtual town hall with State Senator Erik Bottcher on the NY State budget’s health appropriations.
Mr. Martin encouraged Council members to spread the word about the Council application process.
There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned.
