AIDS Foundation Houston is open but has no electricity.  Hours: Monday – Friday, 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.; Saturday 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.  The Stone Soup food pantry is closed on Friday, reopening on Saturday, per their usual hours.  The Housing program is staffed.

Bering Omega Community Services: 

Adult Day Care Center: is open now.

Bering Dental Clinic: may be ready to resume services on Monday, September 22^nd - Call the Dental Clinic at 713-341-3790 for more information.  Emergency dental services are available Thursday – Saturday, if needed call the Dental Clinic at 713-341-3790.  If clients cannot get through, please call the following alternative number: 713-781-3331

Omega House: is open now.

The staff at Bering appreciates everyone's cooperation and patience. 

The Center for AIDS regained power this morning and will re-open on Monday, September 22^nd for business.  Project LEAP class will resume on Wednesday, September 24^th. 

HCHD Northwest Health Center & Thomas Street Health Center:  Thomas Street has moved their HIV medications to LBJ Hospital.  Thomas Street and Northwest Health Center patients can pick up their HIV medications at LBJ pharmacy located at 5656 Kelley Street, Houston 77026.

Thomas Street Health Center is scheduled to resume services on Monday, September 22^nd. 

Houston Area Community Services (HACS) main location on Kirby is open but the elevators are still not operational.  Call 713-526-0555 prior to going to this location. 

Houston Buyers Club is open. 

Joseph Hines Clinic (HACS) will resume on Monday, September 22^nd.  Currently the power is on but intermittent and they are experiencing a staffing shortage so call first.  For clinic or other information please call Ernesto Macias at 281-802-7119 or Nelson Gonzalez at 832-435-7121.

 Legacy Community Health Services:

215 Westheimer Clinic - Power has been restored; clinic operational - regular service hours expected on Monday, September 22^nd.  The Pharmacy is open, HIV testing available, walk-ins welcome.  Lab results are not yet available - anticipate Monday before lab results will be available (patients needing to get their lab results should call before going to clinic to ensure results are back)

Lyons site still has no power; the mobile clinic is at the Lyons site to assist patients needing care at that site located at 5602 Lyons Avenue, Houston, 77020. 

Montrose Counseling Center reopened at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, September 16, 2008.  Please note that the elevators are still not operational. If you are in a crisis and need to speak with a counselor or case manager, please call 713-529-0037 and ask to speak with the person on-call. 

St. Hope Foundation (SHF):  Saint Hope Foundation's Conroe clinic has reopened.  Rural clients in the northern part of the EMA may their main number 936-441-2440 for more information.  With this reopening, all 3 SHF clinic sites (Bellaire, Stafford and Conroe) are open.

The Transportation Program will be operating out of the Bellaire Clinic.  To contact SHF Transportation Services please call 713-839-7111. 

The UTHSC Pediatric Program is fully operational and are open for their regular clinic days/hours. 

VA Medical Center:  All services and clinics are fully operational.  

Walgreens is participating in the FEMA 30 day drug assistance program.   Call 1-800-255-1090 or 512-533-3000 and you can request that your script be transferred to the Walgreens closest to your home or current location.  Your script will be filled according to the FEMA assistance program and you will have access to all Walgreens HIV/AIDS support programs.

Walgreens Pharmacy at Legacy Community Health Services is open and is able to process 340B, ADAP, Medicaid, Medicare, and Insurance Plans and is available through the FEMA 30 day acute drug program. 

City of Houston & Other Surrounding Cities:  The boil water notice has been lifted in most areas.    Please check with your local municipality if you have concerns about the quality of the water. 

Harris County Public Health & Environmental Services is urging all residents of Harris County to be extremely cautious around debris and other storm hazards because of the increased risk of exposure to tetanus.  Individuals can be exposed to tetanus through the soil, structural debris (especially dirty nails), and human and animal feces.   Tetanus is a serious but preventable disease that causes severe muscle spasms, lockjaw and even death. 

If you have not received a tetanus shot in the last 10 years or do not remember the date of your last vaccination, contact your health care provider. 

If you get a cut or an open wound while working with storm debris, wash it thoroughly with soap and warm, clean water to avoid infection. Apply an antibiotic ointment.  For more serious wounds that develop redness, swelling, drainage or do not stop bleeding, seek immediate medical attention.

The Centers for Disease Control recommends Tetanus as a vaccination that people with HIV infection should have to protect their health. 

 Emergency HIV prescription information for hurricane evacuees 

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has activated a special Emergency Prescription Assistance Program (EPAP), available to evacuees in these Texas counties:  Aransas, Bexar, Brazoria, Brooks, Calhoun, Cameron, Chambers, Cherokee, Collin, Comal, Dallas, Denton, El Paso, Ellis, Fort Bend, Galveston, Hardin, Harris, Hidalgo, Hunt, Jackson, Jefferson, Jim Wells, Kenedy, Kleberg, Kaufman, Liberty, Lubbock, Matagorda, Navarro, Nueces, Orange, Refugio, San Patricio, Smith, Van Zandt, Victoria, Walker, Waller, Wharton, Willacy and Wood.  

The EPAP will provide a one-time 30-day supply of medications to treat acute conditions and replace maintenance prescription drugs or medical equipment lost as a direct result of Hurricane Ike. This special assistance is currently scheduled to be available between Sept. 12, 2008 and Sept. 22, 2008.

If you live in Texas, are already enrolled in the Texas HIV Medication Program (THMP), and have to leave your home due to an impending hurricane or subsequent flooding and storm damages, please call the program directly at either 512-533-3000 or 800-255-1090 to request a temporary pharmacy transfer. We'll be able to set you up at an alternate pharmacy location in Texas to pick up your HIV meds while you're displaced. If at all possible, please take your current supply of medications with you before you leave your home, so that you may continue to use that supply. The new pharmacy you're assigned to will need as much information as possible from you regarding prescriptions in order to supply additional drugs to you, so the labels on your current prescription bottles and any other details regarding your physician will be a tremendous help to them. Remember, if you don't have any additional refills available on the prescription you're currently using, the pharmacy can't fill your request unless they can reach your doctor's office and obtain authorization to do so. 

If you're a Texas State Pharmacy Assistance Program (SPAP) enrollee using your Medicare Part D plan to obtain your HIV medications, please note that you may continue to fill your prescriptions from any participating pharmacy in the statewide SPAP network. (For example, any Albertsons, CVS, Kroger, Randalls, Target, Tom Thumb or Walgreens pharmacy in Texas can process the SPAP prescriptions.) A complete list of SPAP pharmacies is available at www.publichealthrx.com/pharm_tx_spap.html. 

If you're currently enrolled in an ADAP program in your home state and have been evacuated to Texas from a neighboring state, there's a special Emergency Relief Application you can complete and fax into the THMP offices at 512-371-4670 along with proof of identity (such as a copy of your state ID or driver's license) and a copy of your state ADAP ID card if available. Our staff will contact you at the phone number you provide and assign you to a Texas pharmacy location in order to pick up an initial 30-day supply of HIV medications while you're temporarily in Texas awaiting the okay to return to your home state. The application you'll need to complete can be downloaded at:  www.dshs.state.tx.us/hivstd/meds/PDF/URGENT.pdf.

Beaumont HIV Services                      

Triangle AIDS Network (TAN) in Beaumont is operating but without power. Clients should contact TAN at their normal office number (409) 832-8338 for information on how to receive services