Thursday, September 9, 2021

#YourVaccineIsWaiting Public Awareness Campaign Targets Marginalized Groups Living with HIV/AIDS

By: Brandon M. Macsata, CEO, ADAP Advocacy Association

The ADAP Advocacy Association recently launched its public awareness campaign - 'Your Vaccine Is Waiting' - targeting marginalized groups living with HIV/AIDS on their need to get vaccinated against Covid-19. Designed to raise awareness, it came in response to learning that numerous segments of the HIV community were among those characterized as vaccine hesitant. The campaign includes four public service announcements, produced by Brandagement, LLC

#YourVaccineIsWaiting

According to the World Health Organization, HIV increases the risk for severe Covid-19 by six percent (6%) and the risk of dying of Covid-19 in the hospital by thirty percent (30%).[1] Yet, vaccine hesitancy among the HIV community remains a very real issue in the United States, as well as abroad in other countries.

#YourVaccineIsWaiting continues our organization's commitment to focusing on the intersection between these two ongoing epidemics. Earlier this year, we blogged about the importance of the immunocompromised getting vaccinated against Covid-19. Fast-forward to now, four amazing advocates living with HIV/AIDS were asked to share their personal perspectives on why getting the jab was important to them, but also for the marginalized groups they represent. 

Tez Anderson, a long-term survivor living with HIV, shares why he decided to get vaccinated against Covid-19. He resides in San Francisco, California. Tez’s message aims to help convince long-term survivors to get vaccinated and further protect themselves.

Tez Anderson

In urban cities with large LGBTQ communities, HIV and Covid-19 has presented dual challenges for older residents. Listen to his message to the long-term survivor community: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s9Z0qiwoe00

Jen Laws, a transgender community organizer living with HIV, shares why he decided to get vaccinated against Covid-19. He resides in Slidell, Louisiana. Jen’s message aims to help convince the transgender community to get vaccinated and further protect themselves. 

Jen Laws

According to the Williams Institute, among transgender people 25.9% report being in poor health, 32.2% have not seen a medical provider in the last year due to cost, and 34.6% expressed their gender identity could result in denial of quality care. Listen to his message to the transgender community: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8W_ZmVDxO74&t=259s.

Michelle Anderson, a community activist and policy associate living with HIV, shares why she decided to get vaccinated against Covid-19. She lives in Waxahachie, Texas. Michelle’s message aims to help convince African Americans to get vaccinated and further protect themselves.

Michelle Anderson

In states with large urban communities, Covid-19 has disproportionately impacted African Americans. Listen to her message to the African American community: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7AJ440_kE68&t=213s.

Jonathan J. Pena, MSW, licensed clinical social worker associate living with HIV, shares why he decided to get vaccinated against Covid-19. He lives in Morrisville, North Carolina.

Jonathan J. Pena, MSW

There are over 250,000 Hispanic/Latino Americans living with HIV/AIDS in the United States. One in five new HIV diagnosis in the United States were among Hispanic/Latino men (22%). Listen to his message to the Hispanic/Latino community: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mPWXIonBtTI&t=233s.

Why is our ongoing public awareness campaign important? According to research conducted by Johns Hopkins Medicine, Pfizer/BioNTech's vaccine induces a robust immune response in people living with HIV.[2] 

“Previous research has suggested a suboptimal response to COVID-19 vaccines in people living with HIV; however, these studies did not fully characterize and define that response, both for cellular [where the immune system directly attacks infected cells] and humoral [where the immune system circulates virus-fighting antibodies] immunity,” says study senior author Joel Blankson, M.D., Ph.D., professor of medicine at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. “What we found with the widely used Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine was just the opposite, as it induces robust immune responses in people living with HIV comparable to those seen in healthy people.”[3]

The HIV community has waited decades for the development of a vaccine to defend against acquiring the human immunodeficiency virus, and yet we have one available for the other ongoing epidemic. SARS-CoV-2 has already taken 659,813 souls (and counting) from us in the United States, alone. Our community must meet the challenges presented by Covid-19 with the same intensity and rigor that we've done in the fight against HIV/AIDS over the last forty years. That is why, #YourVaccineIsWaiting.

[1] World Health Organization (2021, July 15). WHO warns that HIV infection increases risk of severe and critical COVID-19. Retrieved online at https://www.who.int/news/item/15-07-2021-who-warns-that-hiv-infection-increases-risk-of-severe-and-critical-covid-19.
[2] Johns Hopkines Medicine (2021, August 11). COVID-19 NEWS: Johns Hopkins Medicine Study Shows Vaccine Likely Protects People with HIV. Retrieved online at https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/news/newsroom/news-releases/covid-19-news-johns-hopkins-medicine-study-shows-vaccine-likely-protects-people-with-hiv.
[3] Johns Hopkines Medicine (2021, August 11). COVID-19 NEWS: Johns Hopkins Medicine Study Shows Vaccine Likely Protects People with HIV. Retrieved online at https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/news/newsroom/news-releases/covid-19-news-johns-hopkins-medicine-study-shows-vaccine-likely-protects-people-with-hiv.

Disclaimer: Guest blogs do not necessarily reflect the views of the ADAP Advocacy Association, but rather they provide a neutral platform whereby the author serves to promote open, honest discussion about public health-related issues and updates.

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