Washington Blade - December 24, 2004
Joe Crea

Clinic officials concluded that they do not have the money to front checks for some 300 such clients and are discontinuing the Tenant Based Rental Assistance Services. The program was designed in the 1980s for palliative and hospice care when the chances of a patient succumbing to AIDS-related illnesses were more significant.

Brian Justice, associate executive director for public affairs and communication at Whitman-Walker, said the clinic has had to wait nearly three to four months before being reimbursed by the D.C. government for the rent payments. He added that the clinic is still awaiting reimbursements totaling several hundred thousand dollars.

"Originally, our clients needed a place to die, and they didn't have that," Justice said. "We are not helping people die anymore. We are helping them live longer and healthier lives."

The clinic will continue programs that provide temporary housing assistance, he noted.

The clinic is working to ensure a smooth transition with the closure of its tenant program, Justice said, adding that he expects a service provider to take over by April or May of next year. The clinic is currently working to find a new vendor focused strictly on providing low-income housing assistance for the displaced residents.

"We realized that when we looked at our clients, the housing clients, we noticed that a vast majority are receiving no other services from the clinics," Justice said. "They aren't receiving behavior or medical care, and we need to focus instead on our core services."

Justice said that programs related to medical services, behavioral health social services and disease prevention are all core programs of Whitman-Walker and will not be cut.

In addition to the clinic's internal restructuring, Whitman-Walker's board of directors announced last week the abrupt departure of Cornelius Baker, the clinic's executive director who had been with the D.C.-based health service for five years.

Baker said he was leaving due to health and family reasons.

Roberta Geidner-Antoniotti, the clinic's managing director of operations, will serve as interim executive director and lead the organization through the transition while the search for a new leader is conducted by the board's executive committee. According to Justice, the search is likely to begin early next year.

Whitman Walker's financial woes

The clinic has encountered financial difficulties in recent years. Early this summer, Whitman-Walker came close to shutting down its medical treatment program for people with HIV and AIDS until D.C.'s HIV/AIDS Administration agreed to reimburse the clinic for part of a $1.6 million grant to provide medical and social services to low income people with HIV.

Last September, the clinic announced a major initiative to offset a decline of $3.5 million in the last two years in private support from individuals, corporations and foundations. At the time, Steve Owen, the clinic's chief financial officer, said Whitman-Walker had to work to close a $1.4 million gap between the costs of providing services to clients and the clinic's income.

Baker said under a new plan that the clinic's CEO will introduce next year, Whitman-Walker will be able to eradicate its debt in 2005. Presently, the clinic has a debt of about $3 million, he said.

Justice said after Sept. 11 the clinic realized it did not have a "rainy day fund" like many other non-profit groups. He added that Whitman-Walker plans to build an endowment for the future by diversifying its sources of revenue.

The clinic has sold the Maddix Building and has bought out Advance Auto Lease at 1711 14th Street. The Auto Lease building will house most of the prevention and disease programs. Justice said the goal is to consolidate the building space for the Northwest Whitman-Walker Clinic.

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