Trump/Musk Take Away Life-Saving HIV Prevention Medications

Some of my Republican, Trump voting "friends" continue to question why I have anger towards them as we witness the Felon and Elon Musk wreaking havoc on government agencies and imposing policies that may well wreck the economy.  Actually, there are so many reasons to be upset with these MAGA voters, but for those in the LGBT community in some ways one stands out: the desire of the Felon and his Christofascist supporters to erase LGBT citizens, to roll back non-discrimination protections., and purging all references to us from government websites.  As bad as all these are, some of the Felon's policies will literally kill many in the LGBT community and/or increase the likelihood they contract HIV/AIDS, both oversees and here in America.  I'm sure the deaths of blacks in Africa means nothing to the Felon who are pushing a white supremacist agenda.   Here at home, far right elements are seeking to have portions of the Affordable Care Act repealed that require insurance carriers to cover pre-exposure prophylaxis ("PrEP) that greatly reduces the risk of contracting HIV.    The Christofascist have long sought to eliminate LGBT individuals, so there is little surprise that Project 2025 has the LGBT community in the cross-hairs.  A piece at The Advocate looks at this deadly policy agenda:

The Trump administration has launched yet another calculated attack on LGBTQ+ lives—this time by withholding access to pre-exposure prophylaxis or PrEP under the longstanding President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief or PEPFAR program. While PrEP distribution has resumed under a limited waiver following a 90-day foreign aid freeze, the administration has imposed a deadly restriction: most LGBTQ+ people are explicitly excluded from receiving the medication that would protect them from HIV.

In late January, Secretary of State Marco Rubio issued a 90-day freeze on foreign aid. Days later, he issued a waiver for “life-saving humanitarian assistance” that would resume some programs, including the distribution of HIV prevention medications. A February 6 memo from the U.S. Department of State, first published by UNAIDS, spells out the policy: “Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) should be offered only to pregnant and breastfeeding women.” The document goes on to declare that “people other than pregnant and breastfeeding women who may be at high risk of HIV infection or were previously initiated on a PrEP option cannot be offered PEPFAR-funded PrEP” during the foreign aid freeze.

The exclusion is part of a broader effort by the administration to defund programs that deal with diversity or gender and block aid to organizations that support transgender people. The impact is already devastating—UNAIDS estimates that since the administration’s 90-day foreign aid freeze began, more than 3,000 new HIV infections have already happened worldwide as a direct result of the policy. The organization warned on Monday that any sustained restrictions on PEPFAR funding would have catastrophic consequences for millions who rely on it for HIV prevention and treatment,. . . .

[T]he Trump administration’s funding freeze forced the closure of Fahari ya Jamii, a PEPFAR-funded HIV program in Kenya that provided services to over 72,000 people. The program, launched in 2022, focused on providing HIV tests, treatment, and prevention to high-risk groups—including men who have sex with men and sex workers. . . . . With the program shuttered, over 700 healthcare workers have been placed on unpaid leave, and over 150 clinics have shut down indefinitely.

The Trump administration’s decision to exclude LGBTQ+ people from PrEP access has been met with outrage from global health leaders. The AIDS Vaccine Advocacy Coalition, an international nonprofit focused on HIV prevention, issued a stark warning:

“With this new guidance, the Trump Administration is choosing politics over science, discrimination over compassion, and ultimately, death over life.”

AVAC called the move a “death sentence for thousands of people at risk of HIV globally.”

While the Trump administration is blocking PrEP access abroad, it is also attacking it at home. A case before the Supreme Court threatens to gut the Affordable Care Act’s requirement that insurers cover PrEP at no cost.

At the heart of the case is Braidwood Management, Inc., a Texas company that claims covering PrEP violates religious freedoms by “encouraging homosexual behavior.”  A lower court ruling already granted an exemption to the plaintiffs, and now theU.S. Supreme Court will decide whether the ACA mandate should be overturned. If it rules in favor of the plaintiffs, insurers will no longer be required to cover PrEP, making it unaffordable for many who need it most.

The Trump administration’s PrEP restrictions are just one facet of a broader campaign to erase LGBTQ+ people from federal policy. As The Advocate has reported, the administration has systematically removed references to LGBTQ+ identities and HIV-related resources from federal websites, including those of the White House, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Department of State.