HIV Research Cuts Effect Marginalized Groups

About this episode

The episode discusses the impact of HIV research cuts on marginalized groups in the United States and the political disconnect affecting public health efforts.

Of the 1.2 million people living with H.I.V. in the United States, more than 60 percent are Black or Latino. Transgender women, gay and bisexual men and teenagers and young adults of color face the greatest overall risk of contracting the virus in any given year. There is disconnect between science and politics in the long war against H.I.V. Forty years ago, the infection was a mystery and a death sentence. Today, thanks to a combination of biomedical breakthroughs and diligent, public health (testing, education, robust social safety nets), it is a chronic but manageable condition that really only flourishes among society’s most marginalized groups. The first Trump administration vowed to finally end the American H.I.V. epidemic, by 2030, doubling down on prevention efforts in the hardest hit communities. The resulting initiative paid off: Transmission rates are down in the targeted ZIP codes, according to the National Minority AIDS Council, a nonprofit devoted to stopping the virus’s spread. Racial health gaps are narrowing as a result, and because prevention is cheaper than treatment, money is being saved. The second Trump administration seems determined to reverse course…

People in this episode

Host: Ken Scott Baron

Topics covered

• HIV research
• marginalized groups
• public health
• politics
• health disparities

Keywords

• HIV
• Black
• Latino
• transgender women
• gay men
• public health
• Trump administration
• health gaps

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: National Minority AIDS Council

Places: United States, American

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