PRNewswire - November 20, 2003

A Tennessee HIV/AIDS organization received an initial grant of $50,000 from the Pfizer Foundation Southern HIV/AIDS Prevention Initiative. The grants are part of the $3 million, three-year Initiative to fund highly targeted prevention programs to underserved populations in Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas.

Grants awarded during this cycle totaled more than $1 million with ongoing technical assistance from the Foundation.

Although African Americans account for just 18% of the population in Tennessee, they made up 65% of new AIDS cases reported between July of 2001 and June of 2002. In Tennessee, the prevalence of AIDS cases is nearly eight times higher for African Americans than for Caucasians. The rate among African Americans is 71.1 cases per 100,000 people compared to 9.1 cases for Caucasians.

"By partnering with organizations in small towns and big cities across the South, we hope to help slow the increasing incidence of HIV/AIDS," said Caroline Roan, secretary of the Pfizer Foundation. "We know that tackling HIV/AIDS -- the most catastrophic health challenge of our time -- demands that we work and partner together as governments and communities, and as corporations and foundations," Roan added.

While Karen Carothers-Coleman, director of the Methodist Healthcare Foundation's Community HIV Network in Memphis, TN is waiting to get her hair done at the beauty salon she does what comes naturally -- distributes HIV/AIDS prevention information to patrons. Through Project Stylin' more than 50 local barbers and beauticians with shops in high-risk areas, will be trained as peer educators and provided with prevention materials, such as a directory of local services, posters, and brochures.

Says Carothers-Coleman: "The epidemic is forcing organizations like ours to be creative in how we provide information and help save lives. The Pfizer Foundation is a strong champion that is helping us do that."

"In my state of Tennessee, the Methodist Healthcare Foundation is providing vital lifelines to impacted families and communities," said Congressman Harold Ford (D-9th District). "This Initiative, by forging new collaborations between the public and private sectors, represents an innovative approach to dealing with an urgent challenge."

Since 2001, 46 percent of the estimated new HIV/AIDS cases in the U.S. have been reported in the South. While the southern region accounts for little more than one-third of the total population, it is where 40 percent of the people estimated to be living with AIDS call home.

The Pfizer Foundation, established by Pfizer Inc, has worked for a half a century, in partnership with community-based organizations to ensure access to quality healthcare for those individuals most in need.

SOURCE The Pfizer Foundation

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