“So, that’s my take from my experience living with HIV during the COVID pandemic…, I became an invisible person by the medical community.”
~ Person Living With HIV (PLWH), 32y, Western US
“Clients were not able to participate in support groups and therefore felt alone. Because they needed to have some sort of interactions with each other, support each other through this process. So, it was definitely difficult for them.”
~ Community Based Organizer (CBO) Staff
“I had a friend who didn’t get vaccinated and then caught COVID and they didn’t want to tell me…the stigma of people not wanting to share their truth about whether they are vaccinated or not is similar to those people who are fearful of sharing their HIV status.”
~ Gay Black Male, 40y, Western US
“Some people came in for HIV testing, but the numbers were definitely impacted for us and other agencies in the area. People were still concerned about COVID so they were hesitant to come in for testing. All testing [HIV/STIs] went down by 60%.”
~ Community Based Organizer (CBO) Staff
“I did try telemedicine once or twice, but it was pointless…they can’t really examine you and they are hesitant to writing a prescription … I just didn’t find a good doctor. I have been with them for six months and I have changed doctors a lot … and that is incredibly problematic.”
~ Person Living With HIV (PLWH), Gay Black Male, 41y, Mid-Atlantic US
“Isolation became my enemy… with that came depression and anxiety and confusion about what was going to happen.”
~ Person Living With HIV(PLWH), Gay Black Male, 36y, Southern US