We’re calling on the next government to stand with people affected by HIV
Alongside 20 other HIV organisations, NAM is asking MP candidates to pledge their support for the HIV Manifesto, which has been unveiled today.
Ahead of the General Election, we’ve outlined seven priority areas that the next government – whoever it is – must address to ensure HIV remains a priority.
The other organisations behind the HIV Manifesto include National AIDS Trust, Terrence Higgins Trust, Positively UK, BHIVA, HIV Scotland, Prepster, BHA, Brigstowe, MESMAC, LASS, Spectra, LGBT Foundation, Metro, Living Well, River House Trust, Herts Aid, Thames Valley Positive Support, Waverley Care, Sophia Forum and Positive East.
We have come a long way since the 1980s. While stigma and discrimination remain, HIV is now a long term condition and individuals are living with HIV into old age.
HIV treatment in the UK is excellent, but not everyone living with HIV is doing well. The number of people diagnosed with HIV each year remains high and far too many people are diagnosed late with HIV.
Services which help people living with HIV manage their condition are facing continued funding cuts.
We have come so far. We can’t stop now.
That’s why we’re calling on the next government to stand with people affected by HIV and prioritise sexual health services.
Matthew Hodson, NAM’s Executive Director, said: “In recent years we have made astonishing progress in treating people living with HIV, exceeding the targets set by UNAIDS. We’ve also seen that intensive deployment of a range of prevention initiatives, including PrEP, can have a dramatic impact on new infections. These gains could be lost unless we have a Government that is committed to investing in HIV treatment and care, HIV prevention and support services for people living with HIV. Now is no time for complacency. Now is the time to push even harder to ensure that we remain on the pathway to ending new HIV infections and ending HIV-related deaths.”
In the HIV Manifesto, we are calling on the government to:
- Commit to tackling the stigma and discrimination faced by people living with HIV
- Fully fund HIV and sexual health services to meet the needs of local communities
- Recognise the importance of prevention to a sustainable health and social care system by increasing investment in public health services
- Equip schools with the resources they need to ensure that high-quality, age-appropriate, LGBT-inclusive sex and relationships education is taught to all young people in all schools
- Make PrEP available to all individuals at risk of HIV in the UK
- Develop a fair benefits system that meets the needs of people living with HIV whether in or out of work
- Ensure that the health and social care system is equipped to meet the needs of a population ageing with HIV.
Will your local MP candidates pledge to support the #HIVManifesto?
Read the full HIV Manifesto and ask your local MP candidates to take the pledge: act.lifewithhiv.org.uk/lobby/HIVmanifesto