June Action Report

Here is your June Action Report: In this month’s report you’ll find:

• Action from the Coalition: Welcome new member companies, our latest resource for National HIV Testing Day, and information about upcoming hubs in Atlanta and Los Angeles.
• Action From Members: Highlights from coalition companies taking action on National HIV Testing Day, and more great work and announcements from members.
• HIV In the News: The CDC released their latest surveillance reports which signal cautious optimism with recent declines in HIV infections and increase in PrEP prescriptions.
• Action Spotlight: Meet a member of our Advisory Council, Megan Canon, Syndemics Manager at the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.

Action from the Coalition

• Welcome New Coalition Members: Avalere, Greater Phoenix Equality Chamber of Commerce, mistr, and Michael Mazzocco Events!
  
• National HIV Testing Day Playbook for Employers: Ahead of National HIV Testing Day (June 27), the Coalition released a Playbook for Employers to help companies take action and raise awareness about the importance of HIV testing and early diagnosis of HIV. The playbook includes six actions companies can take to promote testing, combat stigma, and encourage a supportive workplace. This is an especially helpful tool for employee resource groups and we encourage members to share this with colleagues and internal ERGs.
  
• Industry Action Cohort #1: Community Pharmacy Convening: On Wednesday, June 7, the Coalition, together with the White House Office of National AIDS Policy and the Elton John AIDS Foundation, convened leaders from across the pharmacy sector at the American Pharmacists Association headquarters in D.C. to explore opportunities to expand the role of community pharmacies and pharmacists in HIV prevention and care.

At the meeting were representatives from major retail pharmacies - including coalition members Avita Care Solutions, CVS Health, Walgreens and Walmart, community pharmacies, affiliated associations, advocacy organizations, members of the federal government and experts.

In addition to discussing opportunities and challenges, there was openness across the group to coordinate together on specific strategies that could address barriers related to scope of practice and reimbursement. An action plan, based on discussions during the meeting, is currently being drafted for consideration by the group and we will be continuing to work with these organizations as these efforts move forward. We are also considering future convenings with supporting industries.

• Does your company have a footprint in Atlanta and/or Los Angeles? We have started to develop our first Local Innovation Hub in Atlanta and plan to also launch a second hub in Los Angeles before the end of the year. We are bringing together local government, public health, business chambers and major employers in each market to think about the specific challenges in these regions and how businesses can play a unique role in addressing the local epidemics. We welcome current members who have a presence in these markets to join these efforts early in the process. Please let me know if you are interested and we can set-up time to discuss further.

Action from Members

• Taking Action on National HIV Testing Day: Coalition members are leading by example this National HIV Testing Day (June 27). Here are a few examples of companies taking action:
• Walgreens and Greater Than HIV, a public information initiative of KFF, have joined with hundreds of health departments and community organizations, to provide FREE HIV testing, counseling, and information in more than 440 Walgreens stores across the U.S. and in Puerto Rico on June 27. The Greater Than HIV / Walgreens National HIV Community Partnership launched in 2011 and has provided more than 76,000 free HIV tests to date.
• Match Group also worked with KFF’s Greater Than HIV initiative to develop custom messages that will run across dating apps, including BLK and Chispa, to raise awareness about National HIV Testing Day, the importance of HIV testing, and connect users to information about HIV and HIV testing locators.
• Healthvana is supporting 40 sexual health clinics across the U.S. through marketing and communications campaigns to raise awareness about the free HIV testing they are offering on National HIV Testing Day.
• Walmart will offer free HIV testing on National HIV Testing Day at select HIV-focused Specialty Pharmacies of the Community locations.

Are you taking action but don’t see your organization listed? Let us know so we can feature your great work in a future newsletter.

• Retail Pharmacies Expand their Impact on HIV: Walmart, CVS, and Walgreens were in the news this month highlighting the work they are each doing to fill gaps in public health delivery:
• Walmart is expanding to more than 80 HIV-specialty facilities across nearly a dozen states by the end of this year.
• CVS has made HIV testing available at its Minute Clinics and helped patients access prescriptions with no out-of-pocket costs through the government program known as Ready, Set, PrEP.
• Walgreens has trained more than 3,000 of its pharmacists to offer treatment advice, provide ongoing testing and facilitate free home delivery of HIV meds to help encourage patients to adhere to medication regimens.‍
• Gilead and HRC Launch Initiative to End HIV: Gilead Sciences, Inc. is investing $5 million in HRC to expand the organization’s work to eradicate HIV stigma in Black and Latiné communities.

[*Reminder: Tell us about the great work you’re doing so we can feature it here!]

HIV in the News

• CDC Releases New Data Showing Drop in New HIV Infections: Last month the CDC published three new HIV surveillance reports that signal cautious optimism. Recent data shows new HIV infections have fallen 12% in recent years, from 36,500 new cases in 2017 to 32,000 in 2021. (**HIV estimates for 2020 and 2021 should be interpreted with caution due to the impact of COVID-19 on HIV testing and diagnosis in the United States.)

Although progress is being made in HIV prevention, many people still lack the prevention and care they need to stay healthy. Racial and ethnic disparities remain pronounced, with people of color accounting for a disproportionate share of new HIV diagnoses. African Americans accounted for 40% of new cases in 2021, and Latinos accounted for 29%, according to CDC data.

Among key HIV prevention indicators, the greatest improvement was in the number of people taking PrEP to prevent HIV. Data on PrEP coverage show that, in 2021, 30% of the 1.2 million persons eligible for PrEP were prescribed it compared to 13% in 2017. PrEP coverage was lowest among Black/African persons (11%), women (12%), and persons aged 16‒24 years (20%). Read more.

Action Spotlight

This month we are pleased to introduce you to another member of our HIV Leadership Advisory Council:

Megan Canon
‍Syndemics Manager, Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment

Megan Canon, MPH, is the Syndemic Program Manager at the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment with over 17 years of experience championing HIV prevention across the country including Colorado, California, and Texas. Specializing in public health entrepreneurship, Megan uses that experience to pioneer new programming as she oversees viral hepatitis, drug user health, and HIV biomedical intervention initiatives across Colorado.

By focusing on making sure Coloradoans impacted by and vulnerable to the intersecting epidemics of STI and HIV and viral hepatitis and other health conditions are served as whole individuals, Megan has been able to put the master in public health she earned at the University of California, Berkeley to good use. Over the years, Megan’s strengths in the HIV field have garnered recognition when she established the Houston Health Department’s PrEP program, and founded one of the U.S.’s first online PrEP educational resources, PrEPfacts.org, at the San Francisco AIDS Foundation.

When Megan is not working, she is chasing her toddler, attempting to grow vegetables in her backyard garden, and loves spending time outdoors.

How do you hope to see U.S. Business Action to End HIV and coalition members contributing toward ending HIV in the U.S.?

It would be my ultimate dream to see private sector companies get involved in more upstream initiatives as part of the U.S. Business Action to End HIV. Health does not exclusively happen in a clinic or hospital. Health happens where you live, work, and play. What role can coalition members play in influencing civil rights within their own companies, industry peers, and/or government politics to address stigma and discrimination associated with HIV status, homophobia, transphobia, xenophobia, racism, substance use, and sexism? These issues are all inter-related and influence the social and contextual factors of the environments where we live, work, and play. If we do it well, the trickle down effects will be long-lasting where people living with HIV and people who are vulnerable to acquiring HIV are able to thrive and live their best authentic selves without fear.

Why have you personally decided to dedicate yourself to working on HIV?

My consciousness about HIV was first awakened in the 2000s after volunteering at a local World AIDS Day event on my university campus. I immediately knew I had found my calling and committed myself to a professional career in public health to work on HIV. It wasn’t until I got a call from one of my closest friends who just received news that their test came back positive that my “why” changed and HIV became super personal and emotional. That call and friendship continues to be a driving force in my work. While HIV is no longer a death sentence, with how far we’ve come with all the advances in treating and preventing HIV, how do I ensure that the people I love and care for are able to live life to the fullest? For me, dedicating myself to working on HIV is not just a job, it’s a moral imperative.

Save The Date

• June 27, National HIV Testing Day
• August 15-8, 2023 NGLCC International Business and Leadership Conference (Denver)
• September 5-8, US Conference on HIV/AIDS (DC)

Your Monthly Assignment

• For Consideration: Funding National HIV Self-Test Program: In late March, Together Take Me Home launched their national HIV home testing program, which allows anyone in the U.S. age 17 or older to order two free HIV self-test kits every 90 days. The program is a partnership with Emory University, NASTAD, OraSure and others, and is funded by the CDC. The good news is that the program has been incredibly popular. The bad news is that they’ve already run through most of their test supply and may need to temporarily shut the program off before year two funding begins in October. Together Take Me Home is looking for additional funding from outside partners to continue providing the HIV self-tests. If your organization might be interested in investing in this partnership to enable this service to continue, please let me know and I can share more details and connect you with the program leads.

Thank you for your commitment and leadership. Let’s keep up the momentum!