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April 4, 2025
It’s time to ACT UP for HIV long-term survivors!
Over the past several weeks we have seen drastic and devastating cuts to HIV treatment, prevention and care programs here in the U.S. The Reunion Project recognizes that these cuts have the potential to undo decades of progress. According to a statement issued by NMAC, "As part of a broad restructuring ordered by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the entire staff of the Office of Infectious Disease and HIV/AIDS Policy (OIDP) has been laid off. The Office of Minority Health has been dissolved, and major HIV prevention programs at the CDC have been slashed, forcing state and local health departments, community-based organizations, to severely curtail and in some cases eliminate services in the most underserved communities."
Earlier this week we saw the National Institute on Aging lose nearly 17 percent of its workforce, including many of our nation's foremost experts in Alzheimer's and related diseases, including HIV. Grants to researchers on studies related to HIV and LGBTQ+ health have been cancelled. People's entire lives and careers are literally going up in smoke. Our nation's health is at risk, and it will take years to repair the damage that has already been done.
It's not just the U.S. that is feeling these cuts. According to an article in today's Washington Post, "The recent cuts extend globally and to other areas of HIV research. Studies in South Africa, the Philippines and Canada wereamong those that lost funding. A 25-year-old group of clinical trials established to easily recruit adolescents for HIV studies was ordered to shut down, as were surveys to pinpoint the factors that place cisgender women most at risk for acquiring sexually transmitted infections and HIV, including whether they are homeless or experienced domestic violence.
"In all, NIH terminated at least $759 million in grants involving HIV research,according to an unofficial tally kept by academics tracking the cuts. The agency awarded about $2.3 billion in HIV research grants last fiscal year. Federal officials did not respond to requests to offer their own accounting.
"'It’s a slaughter,' said Jim Pickett, a longtime HIV activist and a consultant to the youth trial network. 'They are taking money and investments and setting it on fire.'"
The article points out that termination letters often criticize the studies as unscientific because they relate to diversity, equity and inclusion or gender identity.
"But scientists say it’s impossible to fight HIV without acknowledging people in the demographic groups that disproportionately contract the virus and are less likely than cisgender White men to use PrEP: Black and Hispanic gay men, transgender women and Black women. Men who have sex with men acquire more than two-thirds of new HIV infections. Nearly half of them are Black and Hispanic."
We must fight back against these cuts and demand protections for all people living with and vulnerable to HIV. The Reunion Project will continue to advocate for equity and justice for all, including long-term survivors. We state unequivocally that:
- Our survival is being threatened—again – We fought for access to treatment and care in the early days of the epidemic, and now we must fight to protect those services from being taken away.
- Cuts to healthcare, housing, and mental health services hurt us all – If these programs are slashed, more people will be at risk of poverty, homelessness, and declining health.
- We must make our voices heard – Call your representatives, attend town halls, and demand that HHS funding be restored. Silence is not an option.
- Join the movement – Whether it’s through local HIV service organizations, national advocacy groups, or social media activism, we must stand together to push back against these harmful policies.
- HIV long-term survivors deserve dignity – No one should have to fight for basic healthcare, especially those who have lived through the worst of the epidemic.
To fight back, consider joining one of hundreds of events taking place tomorrow, April 5, for a mass mobilization and say, Hands Off! Enough is Enough! For more information go to handsoff2025.org.
Source: https://reunionproject.net/
"Reproduced with permission - The Reunion Project"
The Reunion Project
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