Please remember to mute your lines!! National Community Ending the Epidemic Plan Please remember to mute your lines!!

Drafting a National Community Plan to End HIV/AIDS as an Epidemic Presenters: Jeremiah Johnson- Treatment Action Group Jaron Benjamin- Housing Works

WHAT IS AN ENDING THE EPIDEMIC (ETE) HIV/AIDS INITIATIVE? For the first time ever, we have evidence-based tools in HIV treatment and prevention that are so effective that they can bring new infections below epidemic levels for all affected communities. It is not an end to HIV/AIDS, which would require a vaccine and a cure. It is also not a replacement for addressing the social and structural drivers- these must be central within a plan. Leveraging the revolutionary science of highly effective HIV prevention and treatment to galvanize community leadership

WHERE ARE THESE INITIATIVES HAPPENING? In addition to the national EtE process, plans have been developed in states, cities, and counties all over the U.S. NASTAD maintains a current list of jurisdictions here:  https://www.nastad.org/resource/ending-hiv-epidemic- jurisdiction-plans

WHAT IS THE PROCESS FOR INITIATING AND IMPLEMENTING AN ETE PLAN? Successful planning usually involves partnership and shared leadership between community leaders, activists, service providers, representatives from academic institutions, and public health officials. Each process may look different, but community leadership and mobilization should always be part of the process.

WHAT ARE THE COMMON ELEMENTS OF A WRITTEN ETE PLAN? Again, each plan is different, but most plans contain some common elements: Defined, quantifiable, ambitious targets for Ending the Epidemic. Specific recommendations/objectives for: HIV Prevention Access to Care and Treatment Surveillance and Data Addressing Structural and Social Barriers Strategies for implementing the plan

HOW DO YOU DEFINE THE END OF THE EPIDEMIC? There are different ways to define the end of an HIV epidemic; all of them involve drastic declines in new infections in key populations. In New York, the goal is for new infections to be reduced from around 3,000 per year in 2015 to no more than 750 per year by 2020; this would ‘bend the curve’ on the number of people living with HIV/AIDS in the state In Houston, EtE advocates are calling for the number of new HIV cases to decrease by half over 5 years, from 1,200 to 600 infections per year.

WHY DRAFT A NATIONAL ETE PLAN NOW? Recently, the Trump administration has announced that it will be drafting its own national EtE plan by mid 2019. This obviously raises many concerns. First and foremost, can the drafting of such a plan truly be led by the communities disproportionately impacted by the epidemic, including populations actively under attack by this administration? In order to preserve the community-led spirit of EtE work, Act Now End AIDS (ANEA) – a national coalition of EtE leaders – intends to draft a separate national plan that represents affected communities.

OPPORTUNITIES FOR INPUT Leading up to the US Conference on AIDS (USCA) in September, ANEA will be soliciting input from affected communities from around the country in four primary ways: An online recommendation form at https://survey.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_eWde8Hsj4p0L4UJ Online webinars covering key recommendation topics Webinars/conference calls led by and soliciting input from specific affected communities (like this one). An in person pre-USCA meeting to discuss an early draft of the plan to be held on September 5th in Orlando, FL

WHAT KINDS OF RECOMMENDATIONS ARE NEEDED? An effective EtE plan contains recommendations that will make effective HIV treatment, comprehensive prevention, testing, and evidence-based education easily accessible to everyone living with or vulnerable to HIV. Most input will fall into the following main “buckets:” Prevention and testing Care and treatment Structural interventions Research Viral hepatitis STIs Opioid and overdose epidemic Data and metrics

Next Steps Important Dates ASAP – register for the Leadership Institute (http://www.nmac.org/2018leadershipinstitute/) at USCA August 10 – priority deadline for submissions August 17 – final deadline for submissions August 24 – modeling deadline September 5 – paper released at USCA Leadership Institute

Q&A If you have a questions or comments: Please use the chat feature, or Use the “raise hand” feature, or Email mweir@NASTAD.org