Charlotte HIV clinic closing after federal funding shift

MATT LACZKO | THE CHARLOTTE POST

Quality Comprehensive Health Center CEO Dr. Ra’Shawn D. Flournoy sits in the PowerHouse 2.0 mobile unit at the center’s headquarters in Historic West End. PowerHouse 2.0 will shutter next month after losing federal funding that will be reallocated to state and local health departments.

An HIV testing center in Historic West End is closing after losing federal funding.

PowerHouse 2.0, a program of Quality Comprehensive Health Center since 2010, has been supported through grants from the Centers for Disease Control. In July the Trump administration ordered millions of dollars in HIV prevention funding redirected from community initiatives like PowerHouse 2.0 and moved to state and local health departments.  

QCHC CEO Dr. Ra’Shawn D. Flournoy anticipates PowerHouse 2.0’s closure by the end of September. 

“What we were told is that the funding will shift to the health department with our state, and that hopefully the state would then be able to work with those that were impacted by the funding cut,” he said. “However, with the lack of communication from the state health department, we haven’t heard anything. So, right now everyone is just kind of scrambling around trying to figure out what to do.”

STD rates in Mecklenburg County are among the highest in North Carolina, according to the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. In 2025, Mecklenburg had 249 newly-diagnosed HIV infections and 118 new AIDS cases, a decrease compared to 2024 when 273 and 149 respectively were recorded. Chlamydia was Mecklenburg’s most prevalent sexually transmitted infection in 2025 with 7,308 infections compared to gonorrhea (3,096) and syphilis (698).

According to Invigor Medical, a Washington, D.C.-based medical clinic, the Charlotte region – which includes Concord and Gastonia – was fifth in the U.S. last year with 1,338.9 STD cases per 100,000 people. Only Philadelphia, Atlanta, Bronx County, New York and New York County, N.Y., metro areas recorded higher infection rates.

Over the last 16 years, PowerHouse 2.0 has become more than an HIV testing site. Clients also come in for free STD testing as well as prevention education, referrals and connections to healthcare and support services. 

“There’s always been a stigma when it comes to HIV testing,” Flournoy said. … “Discretion has always been one of the things when it comes to getting testing, so to be able to pull up to a safe haven, get tested, be able to walk back out and kind of go back to their lives or whatever, that’s a huge plus. And I think that one of the things that makes it even more devastating is that when you’re looking at capacity, our local health department doesn’t have the capacity to even test as well, so they’re literally sending people down to our agency to get tested.”

PowerHouse 2.0 is located where access matters. 

The center, located on Beatties Ford Road, is in an area where access to healthcare and supportive resources can and have been historically limited. Even if clients don’t have access to transportation, PowerHouse 2.0 has a mobile unit that reaches people where they are. 

“It goes beyond just the brick-and-mortar location we have here,” said Dr. Jamie Troutman, QCHC’s chief of programs. “We have our mobile unit where our team can go out and provide testing in the community and reach individuals that otherwise wouldn’t be able to make it here and get tested. The reach has been wide and vast and that is going to be significantly impacted by this funding cut.”

Said Flournoy: “PowerHouse is rooted in Charlotte’s Historic West End, in a ZIP code where access to healthcare and other resources can be limited for some of the very people we serve. We believe people should not have to leave their community or navigate complicated systems just to receive basic prevention services.”

According to Jory Heckman with Government Executive, the changes in funding distribution will result in more upfront administrative costs and longer waits for federal funding to reach community-based groups — if at all – like in PowerHouse 2.0’s case.

“We’re looking at people’s lives,” Flournoy said, “and no matter what side that you sway to there’s people whose lives are truly impacted by these types of services that are being cut, so we need everyone to work together. And I think that as a community, in order to make an impact, we have to make that voice known.”

Although the outlook is closure for PowerHouse 2.0, Flournoy and his team are looking to a solution that replicates its impact in the community the last 16 years.

“As we work on transitions, we’re definitely working on building the strategic plan,” he said, “so we never have this issue happen again. We’re looking at how do we grow the organization, looking at community partnerships, looking at donations, also looking at expanding our reach with our 340B program, which allows us to be able to link folks to care through prep, and being able to so just looking at different ways to be able to be innovative in our reach into communities. Just kind of looking at a different approach for now and continuing our mission.”

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