Atlanta HIV prevention advocates plan to hold a town hall on Wednesday, May 28, to discuss the layoff of 17 workers from the Fulton County Board of Health.

The town hall is scheduled for 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Mayfaire Medical, Suite 410, in the Summit South Building at 777 Cleveland Ave. in Atlanta. It is open to the public.

The event is being organized by Daniel Driffin, an independent public health consultant, and William Francis, pastor of The 166 Church. Both have spent years working on HIV prevention.

They are concerned about access to services like testing and access to drugs that can prevent infection in the wake of last week’s layoffs of Fulton health department staff who worked on HIV and sexual health.

“The safety net is literally being yanked out from under people,” Francis said.

Fulton, DeKalb, and Clayton counties were among the 15 counties in the nation with the highest rates of new HIV diagnoses in 2022, according to the latest available data from AidsVu.

“We as a community are going to have to figure out what can be done so people don’t fall through the cracks of public health,” Francis said.

After the surprise layoffs, the state Department of Public Health placed two senior Fulton health department leaders on unpaid administrative leave: District Health Director Dr. Lynn Paxton and Carol Lawrence, human resources director. The DPH said the Fulton layoffs were unauthorized.

Neither state nor Fulton health department officials would elaborate on the layoffs, or the source of the funding for the terminated staff.

“My greater concern is that this will ripple across the state,” said Jeff Graham, executive director of Georgia Equality, a nonprofit LGBTQ advocacy organization.

“There needs to be some transparency from the state health department and Fulton County immediately,” Graham said, adding that groups that provide services to people with HIV are worried about their own funding and also want to ensure that people have the services they need to prevent HIV.

Some of the affected Fulton workers and other advocates told Healthbeat that innovative services like a syringe exchange and initiatives with community groups to promote HIV testing could be disrupted.

Tyson Randolph, who was among those laid off last week, said the terminations will have “major implications for the community’s health going forward.”

“I was in the developmental process of building the bridge with the kids at this community center … but my efforts are all out the window.”

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Associated Press

Orlando City SC (7-2-6, third in the Eastern Conference) vs. Atlanta United FC (3-7-5, 11th in the Eastern Conference)

Atlanta; Wednesday, 7:30 p.m. EDT

BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Atlanta United FC +146, Orlando City SC +160, Draw +254; over/under is 2.5 goals

BOTTOM LINE: Orlando City heads into a matchup with Atlanta United after securing two straight shutout wins.

United is 3-7-2 in Eastern Conference games. United has a 3-0-0 record in games it records more than two goals.

Orlando is 5-2-6 in Eastern Conference games. Orlando is 2-1 in games decided by one goal.

The teams square off Wednesday for the second time this season. Orlando won the last meeting 3-0.

TOP PERFORMERS: Emmanuel Latte Lath has scored five goals with one assist for United. Miguel Angel Almiron Rejala has three goals over the last 10 games.

Martin Ojeda has eight goals and four assists for Orlando. Luis Muriel has scored four goals over the past 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: United: 2-5-3, averaging 1.2 goals, 3.5 shots on goal and 4.7 corner kicks per game while allowing 1.8 goals per game.

Orlando: 5-0-5, averaging 1.5 goals, 4.8 shots on goal and 3.3 corner kicks per game while allowing 0.5 goals per game.

NOT EXPECTED TO PLAY: United: Brooks Lennon (injured), Tristan Muyumba (injured), Stian Gregersen (injured).

Orlando: Gustavo Caraballo (injured), Nicolas Santiago Rodriguez Calderon (injured), Wilder Cartagena (injured).

___

The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

ATLANTA – As Memorial Day arrives, Georgia is wrapping up what is expected to be a record-breaking travel period. AAA estimates that more than 1.38 million Georgians traveled at least 50 miles from home over the holiday weekend, marking one of the busiest Memorial Day travel periods in recent years.

Weather alert: Scattered rain and storms on Memorial Day expected

What we know:

Air and road travel surged throughout the weekend, with Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport—already the world’s busiest—seeing its peak crowd levels on Friday. Despite that, Memorial Day itself is expected to be quite busy as well. As of Monday morning, wait times ranged from zero to 15 minutes, though some delays were reported due to wet weather and thunderstorms in the area.

Memorial Day ceremonies, events in metro Atlanta, North Georgia | May 2025

AAA is urging travelers to plan their return trips carefully. The agency recommends hitting the road before 2 p.m. Monday, as traffic congestion is expected to peak between 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. Monday.

Georgia State Patrol make 279 DUI arrests between Friday and Sunday evening