Title
Resolution endorsing the Undetectable = Untransmittable (U=U) Consensus Statement issued by the Prevention Access Campaign.
Staff Summary
• The Lake County Health Department is part of the Illinois Getting to Zero Initiative, which aims to see zero new Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) infections in Illinois and zero people living with HIV who are not on treatment.
• Scientific evidence shows that people living with HIV on antiretroviral therapy with an undetectable viral load in their blood do not transmit HIV to their sexual partners.
• Sharing the U=U message provides an opportunity to dismantle HIV stigma and encourage people living with HIV to initiate and adhere to a successful treatment regimen.
Body
RESOLUTION
WHEREAS the Lake County Health Department is part of the Illinois Getting to Zero initiative, which aims to see zero new HIV infections in Illinois and zero people living with HIV who are not on treatment; and
WHEREAS Illinois is making dramatic progress in the fight against HIV. Thanks to the dedicated work of providers, advocates, educators, outreach workers and our community, new cases of HIV dropped by 25 percent statewide between 2006 and 2015; and
WHEREAS scientific evidence is clear: people living with HIV on antiretroviral therapy (ART) with an undetectable viral load in their blood do not transmit HIV to their sexual partners; and
WHEREAS the HIV prevention pill, pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), reduces the risk of becoming infected with HIV by more than 90 percent; and
WHEREAS the Lake County Health Department’s Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI) program, Need2Know Lake County, assists clients with medical benefits navigation, ART and PrEP medication, adherence counseling, and linkage to other health services such as HIV and general medical care, behavioral health services, and psychosocial support; thereby helping to prevent new HIV infections in Lake County; and
WHEREAS the U = U Consensus Statement, issued by the Prevention Access Campaign; U = U Consensus Statement has been endorsed by leading HIV experts, as well as over 600 organizations in 75 countries; and
WHEREAS sharing the U=U message provides an unprecedented opportunity to improve the lives of people living with HIV and to dismantle HIV stigma, thereby encouraging people living with HIV to initiate and adhere to a successful treatment regimen; and
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that Lake County endorses the U = U Consensus Statement issued by the Prevention Access Campaign and is committed to dismantling HIV stigma and barriers to diagnosis and treatment for people living with HIV.
DATED, at Waukegan, Lake County, Illinois, on August 14, 2018.