Chapter eleven of the Handbook of HIV and Social Work: Principles, Practice, and Populations discusses the political and legislative intervention for HIV. The chapter is entitled “HIV Related and Legislative Intervention” and is authored by Gary Bailey. In this chapter, Bailey (2010) talks about the challenges in legislative advocacy, especially those for HIV-related policies. According to Bailey (2010), advocates primarily focus on four areas, which are (1) prevention, education and science, (2) racial and ethnic disparities in health care, (3) privacy and confidentiality, and (4) funding. Moreover, Bailey (2010) provides a short review of the terms and a basic primer for advocates to effectively influence the social service system. Furthermore, Bailey (2010) listed some of the useful suggestions to have a successful visit to a congressional office. The chapter also provides a comparison of terminologies, such as the difference of the terms congressman, representative, and a senator.
Moreover, Bailey (2010) emphasizes that social workers, especially those who are HIV-related social workers, must always ensure the safety and confidentiality of HIV-infected and at risk persons. The response of the social workers largely affects the outcome of various advocacies. In the early days of AIDS activism, social workers joined the ACT UP demonstrations, which influenced the congressional hearings to target HIV-related policies and budgets. Various programs, policies, and legislative actions were initiated due to the works of advocates and social workers. Some of these efforts and policies include the Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA), the Ryan White CARE Act, and the Clean Needle Access Campaign in Massachusetts. As a social worker, the chapter features how social workers can affect the policies and legislative actions, which explains how important my decisions will be in the future.
Reference:
Bailey, Gary. (2010). HIV Related and Legislative Intervention. In Cynthia Cannon Poindexter (ed.) Handbook of HIV and Social Work: Principles, Practice, and Populations. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.
