“Right now, we’re on track to end the scourge of HIV/AIDS. That’s within our grasp.”–President Barack Obama
The power of those words really struck me when I heard President Obama say them in his final State of the Union address last week. I’ve wanted to believe that this was possible for the 30 years I’ve been working in HIV-but, until recently, I never really thought it could be true.
So much has changed in just a few short years. We’ve made remarkable progress in treating HIV, both here and around the globe. Now we also have tools (e.g., PrEP, PEP, and “treatment as prevention”) that can dramatically lower the number of new HIV infections.
In addition, we know that starting treatment early can stop HIV from progressing and bring down the unacceptably high rate of HIV-related deaths.
But having the tools isn’t enough-and neither is being able to envision an end to the epidemic. We have to keep up the fight until it’s really over. Ultimately, we will need to act quickly and decisively, follow the science and the data, and use all of the tools at our disposal efficiently and effectively. If we don’t, the opportunity that is within our grasp today may slip through our fingers tomorrow.
The Good News
In the last decade, we’ve seen a significant drop in the total number of new HIV diagnoses in the United States, including dramatic declines in new diagnoses for black women. We’ve also seen modest increases in the percentage of people living with HIV who are getting the care they need to stay healthy.
We continue to make scientific advances toward more effective HIV prevention and treatment, as well as the development of an HIV vaccine. Policy changes, like the Affordable Care Act, are making it possible for people living with/at risk for HIV to get affordable health care and access to HIV-prevention services. And changes regarding using Federal funds to support syringe services programs can also help improve our response.