Nebraska Red Ribbon Community
Who We Are: Nebraska Red Ribbon Community (NRRC)
- We speak for those who have no voice.
- We are individuals living with HIV in Nebraska.
- We are diverse. We differ in ages, races, genders, sexual preferences and orientations, spiritual beliefs and embrace different political leanings.
- Through our diversity, we represent people living with and affected by HIV across Nebraska, whether urban or rural, who want to make a difference.
- We offer peer-to-peer support and friendship to those living with HIV across Nebraska.
- We work together to advise Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) and other interested entities about gaps and barriers we find in navigating health care providers and other needed support services across Nebraska. These entities include community-based organizations, health care systems and clinics, state agencies, including Ryan White, and more.
- We also inform anyone else who requires timely, meaningful information from individuals living with HIV about their physical, mental, and medical needs.
- We only have closed meetings where no public is invited and they are ALWAYS confidential. We protect your identity.
Where we started
The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the primary federal agency for improving access to health care services for people who are uninsured, isolated, or medically vulnerable. In the late 1990’s and early 2000’s, HRSA funded meetings of people living with HIV throughout the United States.
Out of these meetings came a realization that government-sponsored advisory groups made up of people living with HIV was necessary to identify and begin trying to meet this new emerging community’s needs of which it knew nothing about.
The Nebraska Red Ribbon Community (NRRC) was born in January 2001 (in response to the previous two years of HRSA retreats) to focus on what the community’s medical and physical needs are for those living with HIV in Nebraska and to brainstorm ways to close the barriers and gaps in treatment and access to care.
The NRRC Advisory Board was instructed to collect “real world” information anonymously (protecting members’ identities) and directly from the community impacted by HIV and give this feedback to whomever needed it.
NRRC into the Future
We are dedicated to giving insightful and meaningful feedback making the future a brighter one for those newly infected and living with HIV here in the state we call home. As the faces of HIV, insurance, and providers change, new problems exist and can only be solved by being brought to the appropriate entity’s attention. Our voices are needed to speak for those who are not confident in their own voice or cannot risk the exposure in their daily life to advocate publicly about issues encountered in living with HIV.
Become a member of the NRRC Community today!
We are here. What are you waiting for?