AIDS.Center Foundation loses all state support and faces risk of closure
The AIDS.Center Foundation announced it has completely lost state support. This year, the organization was denied funding twice — from the Presidential Grants Foundation and the Moscow Department of Labor and Social Protection.
According to staff, this puts at risk rapid HIV testing, a 24/7 hotline, an emergency stock of antiretroviral drugs, as well as the foundation’s educational projects and media initiatives.
“For thousands of people these services are not a formality but real help. Their absence would be a blow to the entire community of people living with HIV and to the prevention system in Russia,” said staff member Polina Melnikova.
The crisis comes against the backdrop of a worsening epidemic. Official data show that 1.2 million people in Russia are living with HIV, and every year around 30,000 working-age Russians die from the virus. More than half of new infections and deaths occur in the hardest-hit regions — including Chukotka, Kemerovo and Irkutsk regions, Krasnoyarsk Territory, and others.
Vadim Pokrovsky, director of the Federal Methodological Center for the Prevention and Control of AIDS, notes that problems with access to timely and proper treatment persist. Since monitoring began, 1.7 million HIV infections have been registered in Russia, with about 500,000 people already deceased. In addition, government procurement of HIV diagnostic tests fell by nearly one third in 2023 — to 2.88 billion rubles.
According to staff, this puts at risk rapid HIV testing, a 24/7 hotline, an emergency stock of antiretroviral drugs, as well as the foundation’s educational projects and media initiatives.
“For thousands of people these services are not a formality but real help. Their absence would be a blow to the entire community of people living with HIV and to the prevention system in Russia,” said staff member Polina Melnikova.
The crisis comes against the backdrop of a worsening epidemic. Official data show that 1.2 million people in Russia are living with HIV, and every year around 30,000 working-age Russians die from the virus. More than half of new infections and deaths occur in the hardest-hit regions — including Chukotka, Kemerovo and Irkutsk regions, Krasnoyarsk Territory, and others.
Vadim Pokrovsky, director of the Federal Methodological Center for the Prevention and Control of AIDS, notes that problems with access to timely and proper treatment persist. Since monitoring began, 1.7 million HIV infections have been registered in Russia, with about 500,000 people already deceased. In addition, government procurement of HIV diagnostic tests fell by nearly one third in 2023 — to 2.88 billion rubles.