HuffPost: How Trump's HHS Cuts Are Another Attack On Trans People

This article from HuffPost discusses how cuts to the Department of Health and Human Services will negatively impact trans people by creating more barriers to HIV treatment and end access to prevention programs. One result will put ending the HIV epidemic further out of reach. Another is that states will be forced to act to protect access to HIV prevention and treatment. While progress is being made in some states to get rid of discriminatory HIV criminalization laws, they remain on the books in 30 states.

• "Mandisa Moore-O’Neal, the executive director of the Center for HIV Law and Policy, said laws to decriminalize HIV status are important because trans people and communities of color are more likely to be targeted and harassed by law enforcement. One report found that nearly 27% of trans people experienced physical force from police. Across the board, people of all backgrounds are more likely to face higher criminal penalties due to their HIV status."
• “'We now have a larger group of people with less access to resources because almost everything has been defunded — except law enforcement. Criminalization is likely to increase because of the ongoing war on trans folks, on people who are Black, on immigrants, on people living with HIV,' Moore-O’Neal said. 'Public health experts have begun sounding the alarm about what such deep cuts to HIV research and treatment may mean more broadly.'”

Read the full article.