Expanding Mental Health Support Across STAR Programs

Two competitively renewed, multi-year programs are expanding access to mental health services for STAR patients. Brooklyn SURE, STAR’s prevention and outreach program formerly known as PlaySure, is supported with NYC funding administered through Public Health Solutions (PHS), while the Older Adults’ Care Coordination Program is supported through RWHAP Part A and Ending the HIV Epidemic (EHE) funding, also administered through PHS. Both received resources to add social work capacity and strengthen behavioral health support within their existing services.

These investments will help STAR better integrate mental health care with HIV prevention, care coordination, and the broader social and medical needs that can affect engagement in care.

Enhanced Data to Care at STAR-Brookdale Renewed

STAR’s Ending the HIV Epidemic Enhanced Data to Care (eD2C) initiative at the STAR Health Center–Brookdale, supported through EHE funding via PHS, has been competitively renewed for an additional three years. The program uses data-informed outreach and care coordination to identify and reconnect people who may have fallen out of HIV care, supporting retention, viral suppression, and improved long-term outcomes.

Sustaining and Strengthening Core Programs

Together, these renewals reflect an important 2026 priority: sustaining proven programs while adding targeted capacity where it is most needed. In a highly competitive and uncertain funding environment, STAR continues to pursue investments that strengthen services, expand access, and support continuity of care.