Noticed yearly on December 1st since 1988, World AIDS Day provides us the chance to commemorate these we’ve got misplaced as a consequence of AIDS-related sicknesses. It additionally provides us the chance to honor the greater than 38 million people residing with HIV all over the world. This 12 months, we observe World AIDS Day within the context of our ongoing response to COVID-19 and monkeypox, which disproportionately affect most of the identical communities most affected by HIV/AIDS. The U.S. authorities’s theme for World AIDS Day 2022— Placing Ourselves to the Check: 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 making certain equitable entry and higher outcomes. Folks with psychological or substance use issues (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 traces of the HIV epidemic as an necessary pathway to HIV testing, remedy for individuals who check constructive, and prevention companies 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 applications embrace:
- Minority AIDS Initiative: Substance Use Dysfunction Remedy for Racial/Ethnic Minority Populations at Excessive Threat for HIV/AIDS (MAI – Excessive-Threat Populations), which works to extend engagement in take care of racially and ethnically underrepresented people who’ve substance use issues and/or co-occurring substance use and psychological well being issues who are also vulnerable to contracting or who’re residing with HIV/AIDS and obtain HIV/AIDS companies or remedy: $30.4 million. Recipients of this grant program are listed right 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 companies 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 establish as LGBTQ+ who should not in secure housing and reside in communities with excessive incidence charges of HIV: $5.5 million. Recipients of this grant program are listed right here.
- Minority AIDS Initiative – Service Integration, which offers sources to assist cut back the co-occurring epidemics of HIV, hepatitis, and psychological issues by way of accessible, evidence-based, culturally acceptable psychological and co-occurring dysfunction remedy that’s built-in with HIV major care and prevention companies: $9.2 million. Recipients of this grant program are listed right here.
In 2022, SAMHSA additionally funded the Hurt Discount Grant Program, which helps community-based overdose prevention applications, syringe companies applications, and different hurt discount companies which might be allowable beneath federal, state, and native legal guidelines and rules. Hurt discount is a pillar of the HHS Overdose Prevention Technique, which entails working to reduce harms related to drug use and associated behaviors that improve the danger of infectious illnesses – together with HIV.
SAMHSA continues to prioritize reducing HIV/AIDS transmission amongst individuals who have psychological sicknesses or SUDs and linking Individuals who’ve HIV and co-occurring psychological sickness and/or SUD to acceptable care and remedy sources. SAMHSA’s grant applications that concentrate on the intersection between HIV, viral hepatitis, SUD, and psychological sickness are in alignment with the targets of the Nationwide HIV/AIDS Technique (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 targets of the Ending the HIV Epidemic within the U.S. (EHE) initiative, of which SAMHSA is a proud contributing company.
SAMHSA is dedicated to centering fairness inside our HIV response by making certain improved entry to acceptable HIV testing and linkage to acceptable HIV remedy and prevention companies, 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 at the least as soon as as a part of their routine well being care to know their standing. Folks with sure threat components, together with many individuals served by SAMHSA grant applications, ought to get examined at the least yearly. If people want to entry tailor-made details about their private HIV threat and prevention methods, they’ll use CDC’s HIV Threat Discount Software. Should you or somebody you realize want to be examined for HIV in individual, go to the HIV Testing Websites & Care Providers Locator. Should 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, when you, or somebody you realize, is in search of assist for substance use or psychological sickness, SAMHSA’s Behavioral Well being Remedy Providers Locator can join people with remedy applications of their space.
On Worlds AIDS Day 2022, SAMHSA want 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.
