Our mission is to optimize the health of the Tenderloin’s homeless, poor and most vulnerable residents.        
    We serve those living with and at the greatest risk of acquiring HIV/AIDS, who have difficulty obtaining services elsewhere, especially due to substance use, mental illness, sexual orientation, gender identity, race and ethnicity, and/or other social barriers.

The Tenderloin:

A History of Converging Social issues

San Francisco continues to have the highest per capita prevalence of people living with AIDS in the United States and AIDS remains the second leading cause of premature death in the city. In addition to being disproportionately impacted by HIV/AIDS, San Francisco also holds the distinction of being the “Homeless capital of the United States.” With an estimated 15,000 people who are homeless in the city and county, and 3,000 of them meeting the definition of chronically homeless, San Francisco’s total homeless population ranks third in the nation, but is the largest per capita in the United States. Although every San Francisco community has been impacted by HIV/AIDS, the Tenderloin (TL) neighborhood has seen the full impact of the dual public health crises of HIV/AIDS and widespread homelessness. Comprising only 60 city blocks, within it resides a compressed 10.4% of the city’s population, and these city residents predominately represent communities of color, comprise the highest concentration (24%) of homeless persons, comprise the highest proportion (69.7%) of residents living in poverty and have the lowest median household income ($22,351) in the city. The TL is known to be the neighborhood that is the epicenter of new AIDS cases in San Francisco, particularly among injection drug users (IDU), MSM and male-to-female (MTF) transgendered residents. The proportion of persons living with AIDS who are homeless has continued to increase every year since 1990, rising to 18% of total SF diagnosed AIDS cases in 2003, and HIV seroprevalence among homeless residents has remained constant around 10% with exceptionally higher rates among MTF transgender individuals especially those who are African American, and those who are injectors and MSM. Although AIDS is reported as the second leading cause of premature death in San Francisco, it is the number one cause in the Tenderloin. On the national level, the challenges of the compact Tenderloin neighborhood are well known and, as such, the community has been given special designations in an effort to increase awareness and support for its residents. With its high concentration of poor and homeless residents and lack of adequate medical care, the US Health Resource and Services Administration's (HRSA) Bureau of Primary Health Care rates the neighborhood as a "Medically Underserved Area" with a "Medically Underserved Population" (MUA/MUP), the Federal government's highest designation for indicating an overwhelming national healthcare concern and need for a community. The US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) includes the neighborhood as a nationally designated "Urban Renewal Community," providing businesses with tax incentives to increase their building development and job training opportunities, and providing community agencies with additional resources for expansion of support services, all in an effort to renew and improve long-term opportunities for the neighborhood's vast number of un- and underemployed poor residents.

As a critical source of medical care, HIV prevention skills building, housing and emotional support for Tenderloin residents, Tenderloin Health is charged with preventing as many new HIV infections and in engaging as many of its vulnerable service-avoidant residents into health services, as possible. Central to this work is supporting homeless residents in moving and maintaining a stable life off the streets. Work being done at our Golden Gate Avenue drop-in location is not only offering access to the Tenderloin's most hard-to-reach and greatest-at-risk for HIV residents, it is providing support and hope for those already living with AIDS.

We cordially invite you to tour our facilities during service hours , to find out more about our history and plans for the future and to partner with us in our work.

 Tenderloin Health, Inc.
PO Box 423930

San Francisco CA 94142
415/437-2900

Tenderloin Health is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation. Your contributions and donations are tax-deductible to the fullest extent allowed by law.