Governor Schwarzenegger today issued the following statement commemorating the 25th anniversary of the first government-documented cases of AIDS in the United States.

"Today we honor the 81,000 Californians who have lost their lives to AIDS over the past quarter century," said Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. "As a tribute to these Californians, we can and must do more to curb the transmission of HIV. 

"Over the past 25 years, we have made great strides in reducing the stigma against patients living with HIV and AIDS. This virus does not discriminate against those at risk and I encourage Californians to overcome fear through compassion and education."

Governor's Ongoing Commitment to Reducing HIV/AIDS Transmission:

- Increased funding by more than $45 million to the nation's second largest AIDS Drug Assistance Program, serving almost 30,000 people, with the largest contribution of any state in the nation. 

- Recognizing that HIV/AIDS is an epidemic without borders, California has partnered with Mexico on innovative prevention strategies aimed at Latinos and border populations, including bilingual testing counselors.

- Signed legislation changing HIV-reporting methods to protect California's share of federal HIV/AIDS funding.
- Signed legislation creating a new initiative to address the disproportionate incidence of HIV among African-Americans.

- Signed legislation to improve health outcomes of HIV/AIDS patients by better serving patients' pharmaceutical drug needs.

- Signed legislation allowing pharmacies to sell up to 10 clean needles without a prescription, as authorized by the county.

- Developed and currently testing peer-based intervention strategies to increase the number of injection drug users receiving clean needles. ($510,000 investment)

- Increased funding for HIV education and prevention by $5.6 million. Permitted the use of state HIV prevention funds to support locally approved syringe exchange programs, except for the purchase of needles. 

- Developed and implemented a new initiative to increase the number of injection drug users receiving HIV testing and counseling. ($340,000 investment)

Since 1981 through Dec. 31, 2005, California has recorded more than 139,000 AIDS cases.  More than 170,000 HIV tests are performed annually at publicly-funded clinics across the state.