The introduction of the medical treatment called Highly Active Anti-Retroviral Therapy (HAART) dramatically improved the health and longevity of HIV-positive women in the study.

The women’s lives subsequently improved dramatically in two other ways: They experienced 15% less domestic violence, and their drug abuse plunged by 15-20%.

The paper, which will appear the Journal of Human Resources, is the first study to show that interventions that improve women’s health and longevity can reduce both domestic violence and illicit drug use, the authors write.

The women’s improvement also could lead to increased labor market productivity, the authors point out.

Participants in the study were recruited from HIV primary care clinics, hospital-based programs, research programs, community outreach sites, women’s support groups, drug rehabilitation programs, HIV testing sites, and referrals from enrolled participants. The study began in 1994, and researchers added a second cohort to the sample in 2001-02.

“Suppose all of a sudden somebody tells you that you’re going to live for another 30 years instead of expecting that you’ll die in the next five years? What are you going to do?” Hamilton asks.

“Now, all of a sudden, you have a lot more health capital than you ever thought you had. And how does that affect the kind of decisions and investments you make?”

One decision might be to get out of an abusive relationship. Another: to stop using cocaine, heroin, and other drugs.

HAART enhanced the women’s expected well-being and economic resources, such as income, improving their options outside of violent partnerships.

Read the full article about how HIV treatment helped women by Jill Young Miller at Futurity.