Pharma Cos. Team Up With LGBTQI+ and HIV Organizations To Address Monkeypox

Content From: HIV.govPublished: August 17, 20222 min read

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Leading HIV drug makers are working with LGBTQI+ organizations and those serving people with HIV to respond to monkeypox, a disease that is disproportionately impacting the LGBTQI+ community, particularly men who have sex with men (MSM) and people with HIV.

Gilead Sciences, Inc. (Gilead) and a coalition of LGBTQI+ and human rights-focused organizations are collaborating to help meet the immediate needs of impacted communities. Gilead has pledged up to $5 million to support a public education and vaccine hesitancy communications campaign, a public policy response, and a global outbreak emergency fund. Partners include the Human Rights Campaign, GLAAD, the National Black Justice Coalition, and the National Center for Lesbian Rights. NMAC will act as the policy response organizing center to help address policy issues related to HIV and monkeypox. The partners will help ensure accurate, accessible, and targeted information about monkeypox reaches LGBTQ+ people and people with HIV so they are able to make informed decisions about how to prevent and treat the virus.

Gilead’s emergency fund will provide grants of up to $50,000 to existing Gilead grantees working in regions with active monkeypox outbreaks to respond to this growing emergency. Funds may be used to cover expenses such as community mobilization activities specifically addressing the monkeypox outbreak in communities disproportionately impacted by HIV, operating costs related to HIV testing and service interruptions, and essential safety materials. Read more hereExit Disclaimer.

In a separate announcement, ViiV Healthcare announced the establishment of a Monkeypox Emergency Response Fund to support US community-based organizations that serve people with HIV respond to monkeypox with prevention, screening, and education. U.S. organizations that have received grant funding from ViiV Healthcare in 2020–2022 are eligible to apply for up to $50,000. For details, see the Request for Proposals hereExit Disclaimer.

"These are exciting partnerships that will help ensure trusted community stakeholders have the resources to provide accurate and timely information to the communities that need it most,” said Harold Phillips, Director of the White House Office of National AIDS Policy. “Their work will help ensure a coordinated community-driven response that helps to amplify the efforts of the federal, state, and local programs working to address this new outbreak."