PRESS RELEASE

Tuberculosis Elimination Alliance Awards Mini-Grants for Tuberculosis Testing, Treatment, and Prevention

September 5, 2023
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
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WASHINGTON—Today, the Tuberculosis Elimination Alliance (TEA), led by the Association of Asian Pacific Community Health Organizations (AAPCHO), Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum (APIAHF), Hepatitis B Foundation (HBF), and Stop TB USA, with the support of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Division of TB Elimination, announced that it awarded a total of $250,000 to 12 community health organizations serving Asian, Asian American (A/AA), Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (NH/PI), Hispanic/Latino and African American communities that are disproportionately impacted by tuberculosis (TB). 

TEA comprises 15 partners, including community health centers, community-based organizations, regional and statewide coalitions, health agencies, and academic institutions located in areas with highest TB incidence rates across the continental U.S., Hawai’i, and the U.S. Affiliated Pacific Islands. The partnership demonstrates TB expertise in community outreach, clinical research, and providing culturally and linguistically appropriate testing and treatment for vulnerable populations. 

“In the three years since its inception, TEA continues to bring national expertise and foster innovation toward TB elimination efforts. This would not be possible without leaders from local coalitions and national partners, who provide comprehensive health care and improve access to communities, especially those disproportionately impacted by this disease and their families,” said Jeffrey B. Caballero, MPH, Executive Director of AAPCHO. “As the TEA mini-grant program continues, TEA members and partners can implement community-centered, culturally and linguistically appropriate TB prevention, treatment, and education. I look forward to partnering and working alongside members and partners.” 

“This year we had 52 mini-grant applicants that show the nation-wide demand for innovative community solutions to TB and how we are expanding TEA’s impact in communities. We are proud to see the level of innovation that programs are doing to eliminate TB,” said Jamila Shipp, Managing Director of Capacity Building at APIAHF. 

This grant program continues to play an important role in elevating and expanding the work of key community organizations to improve latent TB infection outcomes among vulnerable communities,” said Chari Cohen, DrPH, MPH, President of HBF. 

“There is no way for us as a society to reach TB elimination without involving members of the communities most impacted. That is the brilliance and impact of this grant program. Stop TB USA is thrilled to continue its participation and looks forward to the possibilities opened by the expansion of the program,” Cynthia A. Tschampl, PhD, Chair of Stop TB USA said.

“Many communities throughout the United States are disproportionately affected by TB,” said Philip LoBue, MD, FACP, FCCP, Director of CDC’s Division of Tuberculosis Elimination. “The TB Elimination Alliance’s mini-grant program supports organizations serving these communities to reach people who are at greater risk with the information and resources they need to stop TB.”

Today, TEA offered a third cycle of 12 mini-grant awards totaling $250,000 to community providers that increase awareness and build capacity on TB testing and treatment. The newly awarded mini-grant recipients in this cycle are as follows: 

  • Arkansas Coalition of Marshallese (Springdale, AR)
  • Asian Pacific Health Foundation (San Diego, CA)
  • EthnoMed (Seattle, WA)
  • Jericho Road Community Health Center (Buffalo, NY)
  • Midwest Asian Health Association (Chicago, IL)
  • Mission Neighborhood Health Center (San Francisco, CA)
  • Regional Pacific Islander Taskforce (San Francisco, CA)
  • Revive Community Health (Tempe, AZ)
  • Rural Women’s Health Project (Gainesville, FL)
  • San Diego County Medical Society Foundation, dba Champions for Health (San Diego, CA)
  • Todu Guam Foundation, Ltd. (Tamuning, Guam)
  • We Are TB / Somos TB (National)

Since its inception in 2019, TEA has distributed over $800,000 in mini-grant funding to 36 organizations. TEA, our members, partners, and mini-grantees look forward to building on the progress that we have made so far towards TB elimination.

About the Tuberculosis Elimination Alliance

The TB Elimination Alliance (TEA), led by the Association of Asian Pacific Community Health Organizations (AAPCHO), Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum (APIAHF), Hepatitis B Foundation (HBF), and Stop TB USA, with the support of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), is a national partnership of community leaders dedicated to eliminating TB and LTBI inequities among Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander populations through education, raising awareness, and innovation. For more information on TEA, please visit www.tbeliminationalliance.org.

Contact 

Kristine Cecile Alarcon, MPH, (510) 671-5054, kalarcon@aapcho.org 

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