Mpls. nonprofits say federal cuts could hurt HIV prevention work

Adrianne Jackson, 39, regularly gets tested for HIV after witnessing a family member contract the virus.  

“That’s what made it possible for me to understand how it’s contracted and where to get tested,” Jackson said. 

Thanks to an HIV prevention clinic put on by the Aliveness Project and the Indigenous Peoples Task Force at the American Indian Center on Thursday, Jackson was able to get her test for free. 

But free clinics like these are in jeopardy after the Trump administration has threatened to cut $700 million in funding for HIV prevention from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The move would affect hundreds of clinics and organizations nationwide.

“If they did that it’d be a horrible decision,” said Jackson. “Events like this make it possible for people who don’t know where to get tested to get help.”

The federal cuts come as two other Minnesota nonprofits, Rainbow Health and the African American AIDS Task Force, closed last year, in part due to state funding cuts. The Aliveness Project took over case management for many of those clients.

The south Minneapolis nonprofit has worked for 40 years to help people living with HIV through case management, food and housing support, free testing and low-cost medications.

The Aliveness Project receives nearly $700,000 a year from the CDC, primarily for HIV prevention work, such as the free clinics, said development manager Sonya Bieza. 

That work is a cost-effective way to help slow the spread of HIV, she said. 

“It’s just such a slap in the face,” she said. “A lifetime of medical costs for a person living with HIV can be in excess of $500,000 — who has $500,000?”

Minnesota has close to 10,000 people living with a HIV diagnosis, according to the state Department of Health. The state estimates another 1,100 Minnesotans have HIV but are unaware of their status. 

A report released by the agency last year showed 324 new infections statewide in 2023, which was a 24% increase from 2022 and the highest increase in more than a decade.

New HIV cases disproportionately affect communities of color, with 66% of new cases being nonwhite patients. Men who have same-sex sexual relations and people who use intravenous drugs are much more at risk of contracting the virus.

The HIV prevention and care team with the Indigenous People’s Task Force is in the fourth year of a five-year contract with the CDC that pays the organization $441,000 per year. Calvin Hylton, the team’s HIV program manager, said the funding allows them to target their HIV prevention efforts and resources on Native American adults who use intravenous drugs.

The loss of funding for that last year would be devastating, and derail the progress they’ve made over the last four years, Hylton said.

“Our program tests on average over 700 people each year for HIV and connects people living with HIV to critical resources to decrease their viral load,” he said. “Our piece of that effort would be completely disrupted and put our community in jeopardy and at risk for another HIV outbreak.”

At Thursday’s clinic, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said the federal funding cuts aren’t just hitting public health programs. He cited a letter from the Trump administration weeks ago threatening to cut all federal funding to the city.  

“We’re talking about $70 million,” Frey said. “This is money for things like emergency management, this is money that supports our bomb squad … this is money for affordable housing and shelters and health care for our communities.”

Another letter came the next day rescinding many, but not all, of the proposed cuts, which the mayor said illustrates what state and local agencies are contending with. 

“We’re all kind of left scratching our heads about what in the world is going on,” he said. “The decisions that are coming down are neither wise nor smart, and they certainly aren’t done in the best interest of the communities that we all are charged with serving and keeping safe and healthy.”

Bieza said she has heard from people who come into their clinic that they’re scared of losing access to the services available at the Aliveness Project. But, she said, despite the uncertainty, the clinic will remain open. 

“We want people to know we’re still here, we’re still open and we’re going to figure this out,” she said. “We’re just leaning on our community more than ever.”