Published March, 2015

Infectious Disease Society of America (IDSA) and HIV Medicine Association (HIVMA) Position on the Criminalization of HIV, Sexually Transmitted Infections and Other Communicable Diseases (2015)

This statement was issued by the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) and the HIV Medicine Association (HIVMA) on the urgent need to repeal or modernize HIV-specific criminalization statutes and laws criminalizing transmission or exposure to sexually transmitted infections and other communicable diseases. This statement was issued to update an earlier position statement of the HIVMA against criminalization of HIV, expanding it to include other infectious diseases.

The updated statement highlights the detrimental effects of criminalization statutes and offers a statement of support for evidence-based prevention measures and interventions to reduce the spread of infectious diseases.

The HIV Medicine Association (HIVMA) and the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) represent physicians, scientists and other health care professionals specialize in infectious diseases, including HIV, viral hepatitis and tuberculosis. HIVMA is also an endorser of the Positive Justice Project Consensus Statement on the Criminalization of HIV in the United States.