What is Giving Compass?
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Giving Compass' Take:
• The FCAA breaks down philanthropic support for HIV in people who inject drugs and opportunities for additional support.
• How can funders work to ensure that vulnerable populations including people who inject drugs get the help that they need?
• Learn more about HIV focus areas to consider.
According to a recent UNAIDS analysis, people who inject drugs (PWID) are 22 times more likely to acquire HIV than the rest of the global population. It is estimated that 25% of new infections outside of sub-Saharan Africa occur among PWID.
Injection drug use increases the risk of blood-borne infections—not just HIV, but also hepatitis—which spread efficiently through needle sharing. Recently, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released data showing that more than one in four people who inject drugs reuse needles, and many have not had an HIV test in the last year. Globally, on average, one in 10 new HIV infections are caused by the sharing of needles. Yet, PWID often have among the least access to needed HIV treatment, prevention and care services due to the immense criminalization, stigma and economic marginalization that surrounds drug use.
In 2015 the U.S. experienced the first increase in the number of HIV diagnoses due to injection drug use in two decades, largely due to the opioid epidemic and HIV outbreak in Scott County, Indiana. Since then, the intersection of the opioid and HIV epidemics has become a growing concern.
Funders focused on hard to reach and vulnerable populations of drug users. One program supported HIV education and prevention efforts focused on deterring high-risk behaviors – including drug use – in a Malawi prison. Another program focused on increasing HIV testing among sex workers, drug users and migrants in Russia, while another program focused on the scale up of harm reduction services for children and young people who use drugs.
Many funders also supported local, national and international advocacy efforts to create and scale up harm reduction policies to help reduce the spread of HIV/AIDS.
In India, funders are supporting efforts to integrate essential HIV prevention and treatment services in venues that are friendly and accessible to men who have sex with men and drug users – two criminalized and disenfranchised populations within the country.
Many funders supported comprehensive housing, food and mental health programs that supported the needs of PWID.
Only 26% of HIV-related philanthropy for PWID in 2017 explicitly focused on syringe exchange/access programs, even though research shows their effectiveness at preventing transmission as well as linking PWID to life-saving treatment and social services. It is important to note that in the U.S., regardless of the legality of syringe exchange programs in a state, Federal funds cannot be used for the purchase of syringes. For funders who are looking to support this work, purchasing supplies is a cost-efficient way to leverage funding for HIV and harm reduction efforts.