Noticed yearly on December 1st since 1988, World AIDS Day provides us the chance to commemorate these we’ve got misplaced on account of AIDS-related sicknesses. It additionally provides us the chance to honor the greater than 38 million people dwelling with HIV around the globe. This yr, we observe World AIDS Day within the context of our ongoing response to COVID-19 and monkeypox, which disproportionately affect most of the similar communities most affected by HIV/AIDS. The U.S. authorities’s theme for World AIDS Day 2022— Placing Ourselves to the Take a look at: Attaining Fairness to Finish HIV—emphasizes accountability and motion. At SAMHSA, we’re dedicated to serving to finish the HIV epidemic in the USA by reaching these communities disproportionately affected by HIV.
SAMHSA’s mission is to steer public well being and repair supply efforts that promote psychological well being, forestall substance misuse, and supply remedies and helps to foster restoration whereas guaranteeing equitable entry and higher outcomes. Individuals with psychological or substance use problems (SUD) are at an elevated threat of HIV. Substance use and psychological well being remedy suppliers like SAMHSA’s grant recipients and companion organizations serve on the entrance strains of the HIV epidemic as an essential pathway to HIV testing, remedy for individuals who take a look at optimistic, and prevention providers to make sure that people who find themselves HIV-negative keep destructive.
In 2022, SAMHSA awarded $45.1 million in grants to satisfy the behavioral well being wants of people that both are in danger for contracting or live with HIV/AIDS. These grant packages embody:
- Minority AIDS Initiative: Substance Use Dysfunction Therapy for Racial/Ethnic Minority Populations at Excessive Danger for HIV/AIDS (MAI – High-Risk Populations), which works to extend engagement in look after racially and ethnically underrepresented people who’ve substance use problems and/or co-occurring substance use and psychological well being problems who are also vulnerable to contracting or who’re dwelling with HIV/AIDS and obtain HIV/AIDS providers or remedy: $30.4 million. Recipients of this grant program are listed here.
- Substance Abuse and HIV Prevention Navigator Program for Racial/Ethnic Minorities Cooperative Settlement (Prevention Navigator), which seeks to offer substance misuse and HIV prevention providers to racial or ethnic minority males in danger for HIV/AIDS. This system locations an emphasis on males who’ve intercourse with different males, together with transgender people, in addition to those that determine as LGBTQ+ who are usually not in secure housing and reside in communities with excessive incidence charges of HIV: $5.5 million. Recipients of this grant program are listed here.
- Minority AIDS Initiative – Service Integration, which supplies sources to assist cut back the co-occurring epidemics of HIV, hepatitis, and psychological problems by accessible, evidence-based, culturally acceptable psychological and co-occurring dysfunction remedy that’s built-in with HIV main care and prevention providers: $9.2 million. Recipients of this grant program are listed here.
In 2022, SAMHSA additionally funded the Harm Reduction Grant Program, which helps community-based overdose prevention packages, syringe providers packages, and different hurt discount providers which are allowable underneath federal, state, and native legal guidelines and rules. Hurt discount is a pillar of the HHS Overdose Prevention Strategy, which includes working to reduce harms related to drug use and associated behaviors that improve the chance of infectious ailments – together with HIV.
SAMHSA continues to prioritize reducing HIV/AIDS transmission amongst individuals who have psychological sicknesses or SUDs and linking People who’ve HIV and co-occurring psychological sickness and/or SUD to acceptable care and remedy sources. SAMHSA’s grant packages that focus on the intersection between HIV, viral hepatitis, SUD, and psychological sickness are in alignment with the objectives of the National HIV/AIDS Strategy (NHAS) (PDF | 1.8 MB), replicate SAMHSA’s commitments specified by our contribution to the NHAS Federal Implementation Plan (PDF | 707 KB), and are in alignment with the objectives of the Ending the HIV Epidemic in the U.S. (EHE) initiative, of which SAMHSA is a proud contributing company.
SAMHSA is dedicated to centering fairness inside our HIV response by guaranteeing improved entry to acceptable HIV testing and linkage to acceptable HIV remedy and prevention providers, together with non-traditional, community-based settings. The Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention (CDC) recommends that everybody ages 13-64 get examined for HIV not less than as soon as as a part of their routine well being care to know their standing. Individuals with sure threat components, together with many individuals served by SAMHSA grant packages, ought to get examined not less than annually. If people wish to entry tailor-made details about their private HIV threat and prevention methods, they’ll use CDC’s HIV Danger Discount Device. In case you or somebody you realize wish to be examined for HIV in individual, go to the HIV Testing Sites & Care Services Locator. In case you or somebody you realize would like to obtain an HIV self-test, go to the Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention HIV Self-Testing web page. Lastly, if you happen to, or somebody you realize, is searching for assist for substance use or psychological sickness, SAMHSA’s Behavioral Health Treatment Services Locator can join people with remedy packages of their space.
On Worlds AIDS Day 2022, SAMHSA wish to thank our employees, our grantees, federal companions and the substance use dysfunction and psychological well being neighborhood in working towards our shared purpose of ending the HIV epidemic in the USA. Thanks for the work you do to avoid wasting lives and enhance the well being of the individuals of America.
