EVERETT—Snohomish County on November 27, recognized December 1, as World AIDS Day, to raise awareness about HIV and AIDS while honoring the lives that have been, and continue to be, affected by the epidemic.
“I am proud to sponsor this resolution recognizing December 1, 2024, as World AIDS Day in Snohomish County and I thank my councilmembers for the unanimous vote,” Councilwoman Megan Dunn released in a statement to the Lynnwood Times. “HIV remains an urgent health issue that starts with listening and centering those with HIV. The current global health goal is to end AIDS as a public health threat by 2030; and residents can take steps to help realize that goal. These steps include supporting education and prevention programs to help residents understand and reduce risks of getting HIV, including confidential and anonymous HIV testing and reducing the stigma associated with being HIV positive. I want to thank Mario Lotmore for bringing the need for this resolution to my attention.”
This marks the second year Snohomish County recognized World AIDS Day. Last year Frank Busichio, President of the AIDS Project Snohomish County, read a proclamation signed by County Executive Dave Somers recognizing December 1 as World AIDS Day — the first time in the county’s history since World AIDS Day was first started in 1988 by two World Health Organization (WHO) public information officers.
This year’s theme, Collective Action: Sustain and Accelerate HIV Progress, is dedicated to the progress that has been made through global and national HIV programs over the last forty years.
“Today, we pause to remember the estimated 39 million individuals around the globe with HIV, including approximately 1.2 million people here in the United States. We also remember the 42 million individuals worldwide who have died from HIV/AIDS. Their stories and their lives will continue to motivate and inform our work to end the HIV epidemic,” Admiral Rachel L. Levine, MD, Assistant Secretary for Health at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services released in a statement reinforcing the 2024 World AIDS Day theme.
This World AIDS Day, the Biden Administration published a final rule removing HOPE Act research requirements currently in place for transplants of kidneys and livers from donors with HIV to recipients with HIV. The ruling expands access to kidney and liver transplants for people with HIV by removing clinical research requirements for these transplants.
The World Health Organization reports an estimated 39.9 million people were living with HIV globally as of 2023 and approximately 630,000 people died from HIV‑related causes that same year. An estimated 1.3 million people worldwide acquired HIV in 2023. Since its first reported case in June of 1981, an estimated 88.4 million people have been infected with the HIV virus.
The African continent remains most severely affected region in the world with one in every 30 adults (3.4%) live with HIV which accounts for more than two-thirds of the people living with HIV worldwide.
According to its 2023 HIV Surveillance Report, the Washington State Department of Health reported approximately 15,000 people living with HIV in the state, with about 400 new cases diagnosed each year. There were 29 new HIV cases and 1,340 people living with HIV/AIDS in Snohomish County that same year.
A memorial resides in Everett at Plaza West of the Old Mission Building at Pacific and Wetmore avenues, that was dedicated on World AIDS Day in 2005 thanks to the combined efforts of volunteers, for those affected by HIV and AIDS.
A major breakthrough in HIV prevention
A new paper in the New England Journal of Medicine, has identified a new drug called lenacapavir, when injected twice-yearly to be “significantly more effective than the daily oral PrEP” antiretroviral medication in the infection of HIV.
PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis) is highly effective at preventing HIV transmission through sex when taken as prescribed. However, early clinical trials funded by pharmaceutical company Gilead show a near 100% reduced risk of infection of HIV by those who were injected with lenacapavir once every 6 months. The Gilead-funded clinical trial is led by physicians at Emory University and Grady Health System.
Over the course of its 20 years, the United States President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) has saved 25 million lives and enables 5.5 million babies to be born HIV-free across 55 countries to mothers living with HIV.
Here in the U.S., HIV incidence among people ages 13 and older has declined 21% in jurisdictions receiving Ending the HIV Epidemic in the U.S. (EHE) initiative funding, as compared to 12% in the nation overall. EHE has saved over $5.1 billion in lifetime medical costs due to the 9,500 fewer HIV infections in EHE jurisdictions in 2022 compared to 2017, the CDC reports.
Author: Mario Lotmore
