With an election year having come to a close, new lawmakers can expect to hear an earful from their constituents. APAIT staff Dani Mejia is only one of the over 100 Southern California advocates who will be present.

Supporters of people living with HIV/AIDS (PWA) will go to Sacramento on February 2 for Advocacy Day. Their agendas include extended conversations about policies that affect public health, especially those related to substance use and treatment. Advocates especially plan to tackle Proposition 36 and the Berg Bill (Assembly Bill 2871). Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has also proposed redesigning MediCal, California’s health program for the state’s uninsured and low-income families.

Passed in 2000, Proposition 36 allows for first and second-time nonviolent offenders convicted of simple drug possession to opt for substance treatment instead of jail time. Some of the pending issues include increased availability for residential facilities and offering a variety of treatment options conducive to individual drugs. Heroin users, for example, require different treatment methods compared to those who use methamphetamine (speed).

In November 2004, Gov. Schwarzenegger vetoed Assemblymember Patty Berg’s (D-Eureka) legislation that would make county-run needle exchange programs easier to administer. Under the current system, counties must declare a state of emergency every two weeks to run their programs; this bill would have eliminated that requirement. The Governor and Berg disputed about his concerns that the bill did not adequately hand local control to the exchange programs.

Groups that have helped to organize this day of advocacy include the Southern California HIV/AIDS Coalition, California Society of Addiction Medicine, Drug Policy Alliance, and O.A.S.I.S. For more information about APAIT’s participation, contact Dani Mejia at (213) 553-1871.