US actions harm global efforts to prevent and treat HIV in dozens of countries, new report says - AP News

What the report says

The Associated Press reports that a new amfAR report says disruptions to the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, or PEPFAR, under the Trump administration damaged HIV prevention and treatment work across dozens of countries. The report links the disruption to cuts affecting the U.S. Agency for International Development and thousands of global health grants, saying organizations were pushed to close clinics, reduce services and lay off workers.

PEPFAR, launched in 2003, is credited with saving at least 26 million lives. According to AP, amfAR surveyed PEPFAR-funded organizations between last November and April, receiving responses from 166 groups in 46 countries. The findings included more than 1,700 clinic, drop-in center and service-site closures tied to terminated awards, as well as the loss of more than 16,000 full-time staff positions. AP noted the survey did not capture every PEPFAR partner, so the extent of disruption could be under- or overstated.

The report found that even services the U.S. government had directed to continue — including HIV treatment, testing and prevention of mother-to-child transmission — were interrupted for many partners. It also said prevention services and programs for populations at elevated HIV risk, including sex workers, transgender people, men who have sex with men and people who inject drugs, were especially affected. PEPFAR expenditure data cited by AP showed prevention spending fell 51% from fiscal 2024 to fiscal 2025.

A State Department spokesperson told AP the administration had strengthened PEPFAR through strategic direction and cited recent quarterly data showing stable treatment levels in more than 50 countries. Researchers cited by AP disputed the broader picture, pointing to other data indicating significant service disruptions and fewer people receiving PEPFAR-supported antiretroviral treatment.