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8/11/2019 ACT UP LOI for Elton John Foundation

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Back to Basics: ACT UP New Yorks Plan for Expanded Prevention and Education

in the i!ht A!ainst A"#$

Eighteen years after the advent of HAART there are multiple means of HIV prevention,

and they involve both people who are living with HIV and people who are HIV-negative.

Treatment as revention !Tas" involves treating those with HIV so they are healthy andso they have an undete#table viral load that is e$tremely unli%ely to transmit HIV. The

&ood ' (rug Administration !&(A" has approved Truvada as re-E$posure rophyla$is

!rE", a pharma#euti#al HIV prevention for people at ris%. Antiretrovirals as ost-E$posure rophyla$is !E" #an stave off a potential infe#tion after transmission. The

tools of Tas, E, and rE must be utili)ed to lower the *+,+++ new HIV infe#tions that

ta%e pla#e nationally every year for the past ten years. The huge amounts of data gathered

from thirty years of HIV-related resear#h must be translated ui#%ly and pragmati#allyinto poli#ies and programs that will help relieve our #ommunities of the #rippling

physi#al, mental, and so#ial effe#ts of this disease. Toward this end, AT /0 has

spent the past year influen#ing HIV poli#y on the #ity, state and federal levels to begin to

reali)e these goals. 1or% in dire#t a#tion, advo#a#y, #ommunity organi)ing, #ommunityedu#ation, and strategi# #ommuni#ations have produ#ed signifi#ant results and AT

/0 see%s to e$pand its impa#t in these areas.

2ast summer AT members met with offi#ials from /ew 0or% ity3s (epartment of

Health to demand a more responsive implementation of rE and E. AT memberstestified before the #ity3s HIV advisory panels and helped shape an information #ampaign

targeting the use of rE in #ommunities at highest ris%. This #ampaign was laun#hed on

year later, 4ust in time for 5+67 8ay ride 1ee%end.

2ast summer AT #alled upon /ew 0or% 9tate to update its guidelines for E, and

the state responded by issuing revised guidelines. This past winter AT #alled upon/ew 0or% 9tate to issue final guidelines for rE, and the state responded by issuingthem. :ffi#ials from /ew 0or% 9tate3s AI(9 Institute met with AT members in /ew

0or% ity to initiate an ongoing dialogue on prevention poli#ies and information

materials. ;embers of AT have been deeply involved in the effort to #onvin#e8overnor uomo to endorse a #ommunity-initiated pro4e#t to End the AI(9 Epidemi# in

/ew 0or% 9tate by 5+5+. :n 5+67 8ay ride (ay, the 8overnor announ#ed his support

of a three-pronged plan to support e$panded testing, in#reased a##ess to ARV3s for people

living with HIV, and greater a##ess to rE.

This spring AT #alled upon the federal enters for (isease ontrol to issue final

federal guidelines for rE. ( responded by issuing the guidelines and pro#eeded toinvite members of AT to Atlanta to meet with the agen#y3s HIV offi#ials. AT

members dis#ussed their demands for e$panded pharma#ologi#al prevention and

pragmati# use of the Affordable are A#t for HIV prevention and ongoing health #are forHIV- negative people at ris%. AT also demanded spe#ifi# in#iden#e data for trans

women and men.


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In #ommuni#ating with #ommunity AI(9 servi#e organi)ations that #ondu#t trials for

rE, AT has found that interest in rE is high, but the high #ost of Truvada and

bias on the part of medi#al providers are obsta#les to its implementation on levels thatwill signifi#antly affe#t the number of new infe#tions. In 5+67, AT plans to push the

( for in#reased seminars and wor%shops that train medi#al providers about E and

rE guidelines and the implementation of these approa#hes. Through dire#t a#tion andadvo#a#y, AT also plans to #ontinue pressuring Truvada manufa#turer 8ilead to

lower the pri#e of the HIV drug, as well as the pri#e of its drug 9ovaldi, whi#h #ures the

freuent #o-infe#tion of Hepatitis . AT will also a#t as wat#hdog to ma%e sure8overnor uomo ma%es good on his promise to see that /ew 0or% is first to


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web presen#e #an serve as vibrant media hub, #ommunity forum, and invaluable a#tivist

ar#hive. A stronger site will also enhan#e AT 3s development efforts.

act up loi for elton john foundation

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