Sure, Donald Trump wants to cut a huge chunk of funding for millions of HIV/AIDS patients overseas, dismantle the Affordable Care Act for HIV/AIDS patients here, and just lost six experts from the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS because he ”simply does not care,” but he issued a statement in support of National HIV Testing Day anyway. And much like his empty statement recognizing the one-year anniversary of the Pulse massacre in Orlando this month, it skips out on some of the most important details, like, you know, which populations remain vulnerable to contracting HIV. It’s almost like he missed the whole fucking point of the day to begin with:
Nowhere in the statement did Trump mention LGBTQ people or people of color, two groups still disproportionately impacted by the virus in the United States. African Americans are most affected by HIV. In 2015, there were 17,670 African Americans diagnosed with HIV, and more than half of them identified as gay or bisexual men. That same year, there were 10,509 new diagnoses among white Americans — 7,000 fewer diagnoses than among African Americans — even though there are more than five times as many white people living in the country. Trump made no effort to recognize these disparities or speak specifically to these populations.
Trump also blatantly lied about how he’s actually helping to diagnose and treat people for HIV. “My Administration is determined to build upon these improvements,” he wrote, “and continue supporting domestic and global health programs that prioritize testing and treatment for HIV/AIDS.” But he’s not actually doing that.
In their group letter announcing their resignation from the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS, former council members also held no bars: “The Trump Administration has no strategy to address the on-going HIV/AIDS epidemic, seeks zero input from experts to formulate HIV policy, and—most concerning—pushes legislation that will harm people living with HIV and halt or reverse important gains made in the fight against this disease … the final straw for us, is President Trump’s handling of health care reform.” Among services cut globally, amfAR estimates that over 250,000 HIV/AIDS patients will experience treatment cuts and over 78,000 children will be orphaned due to resulting deaths.
More from Think Progress:
According to the six who resigned, Trump has zero awareness of the actual impact of HIV, like the reality that only 40 percent of people living with HIV in the United States can access the life-saving medications that they need. He refused to meet with HIV advocates during the campaign, and the day he took office, he took down the Office of National AIDS Policy website and it hasn’t been replaced months later. Unsurprisingly, he’s also appointed no one to lead the White House Office of National AIDS Policy, meaning there’s no one advising him on issues related to HIV.
They also outlined just how devastating Trump’s policy agenda could be. More than 40 percent of people with HIV depend on Medicaid for their care, and both the House and Senate versions of Trumpcare would massively cut Medicaid. And of course, HIV is a pre-existing condition, which means that the legislation could also allow insurance companies to charge people with HIV more, such that even the people who can currently afford their medications on their own might not be able to anymore.
Others didn’t miss the hypocrisy, either.