Giving Compass' Take:

• Grantmakers in Aging outlines opportunities for funders to expand HIV/AIDS in aging services to fill existing gaps. 

• Which of these gaps are you positioned to fill? 

• Read a comprehensive guide to funding in aging


For decades, aging and HIV/AIDS and their medical, governmental, community, and philanthropic structures and services were worlds apart. This made sense at first, when the majority of the first generation of people affected by HIV were young gay men, many of whom got their care in HIV-specific or infectious disease settings. The odds of living a long life with HIV/AIDS were small, and even survivors did not seek traditional aging services.

Those circumstances have now changed. Thanks to advances in treatment, the ability to live for decades with HIV has become a remarkable success story. Add to this the reality of older people who are acquiring the infection in their 50s or 60s, and HIV/AIDS must now be included as an aging issue. Of the 1.1 million people in the United States who are living with HIV/AIDS, half are 50 or older (50+). By 2030, it is anticipated that three out of four people who are living with HIV will be 50+.

This serendipity creates some unanticipated needs. While 50+ may seem young for aging services, many people living with HIV experience a cascade of other health challenges, including classic geriatric syndromes, even when their HIV is well-controlled, and need aging- and geriatrics-expert help at much younger-than-usual ages. This transition can be jarring and even traumatizing because HIV preparedness in mainstream primary, specialty, and geriatrics care settings is often woefully inadequate. Stigma and fear of being rejected or “outed” in unfamiliar care settings can drive people living with HIV into isolation and depression, dangerously sabotaging their ability to remain in care.

Funding Recommendations

Improving care and quality of life for people aging with HIV/AIDS offers a huge range of opportunities, many of them suitable for small or community foundations. Here are a few ideas and starting points.

Support Wraparound Care

  • Housing
  • Food security
  • Legal
  • Income replacement and job training
  • Mobility

Promote Outreach and Education Health fairs

  • Health fairs
  • Encourage Positive Voices

Bridge Gaps in Medical Care

  • Leverage Continuing Medical Education
  • Look to Nursing
  • Dementia Care
  • Syringe Exchange

Deepen Social Support

  • Support Positive Singles
  • Caregiver Support
  • Encourage Self-Management
  • Help People Make Their Stories Count