AVAC in the News
“Our greatest scientific opportunity in my 35 years working in the field has been met by the most outrageous political and economic decision imaginable.”
Results
showing 1-10 of 852
Anxiety in Paradise: Highlights From the 26th International AIDS Conference in Rio de Janeiro
Following AIDS 2026 in Rio de Janeiro, TheBody reflected on the stark disparities on display. “There were all of these tensions there,” AVAC's Executive Director Mitchell Warren said. “Between the amazing science and the difficult political and economic time we’re in. Between the opportunity of new, long-acting prevention tools and the fact that we were in a region of the world where access to them doesn’t exist. And between what could be and what currently is.”
Source: TheBody
Aids is no longer exceptional. What happens now?
Following AIDS 2026, Bhekisisa's Mia Malan reflects on the annual conference that took place amid an unprecedented funding crisis and the dwindling political will to address HIV. As AVAC Executive Director Mitchell Warren said, “What comes out of a conference [or movement] is more important than what happened at the conference. Three to six months from now, we need to ask: are we working differently because we gathered in Rio? ...I hope the answer will be clear: coming together and planning together strengthened our Aids response. That’s the measure of success.”
Source: Bhekisisa
Prevention Option:
The Second Injection
In her Substack, Skye Grove unpacks the distance that still lies between products and services and the people who need them. Reflecting on AIDS 2026 conversations and sessions, she shares insights from AVAC's Executive Director Mitchell Warren, Access Bridge's Executive Director Wawira Nyagah, and AVAC partners like Yvette Raphael and Adaobi Lisa Olisa.
Source: Skye Grove's Substack
Prevention Option:
Merck’s alimatravir licensing deal receives mixed response
In July, Merck announced licensing agreements with seven manufacturers for generic production of its HIV drug alimatravir, though access and equity concerns remain. As AVAC's Executive Director Mitchell Warren explained, AVAC hopes to see Merck pledge to reach at least 2 million people with alimatravir within the first year of product launch and 5 million within the first 2 years, and guarantee it will be available in LMICs within 3 months of first approval. “These targets are a bare minimum and entirely feasible. We need this to jump-start the scale of the market, drive down prices and, most importantly, deliver impact”, Warren said.
Source: The Lancet
Prevention Option:
Aspen clinches deal to produce new once-a-month HIV tablet
A licensing agreement was recently inked between Aspen and Merck, granting Aspen rights to develop, manufacture and commercialise new anti-HIV drug alimatravir. South Africa also announced that three local pharmaceutical manufacturers have been shortlisted to make Gilead’s six-monthly HIV prevention shot lenacapavir (LEN). The news comes as pressure mounts on Gilead Sciences to expand access to LEN. At AIDS 2026 in Brazil last week, Gilead took flak for making only 3 million doses of LEN available over three years, with AVAC estimating that 5 million doses a year are needed to make a significant impact on the epidemic.
Source: Juta MedicalBrief
Accelerating policy approval and uptake of the dual prevention pill in Zambia through early stakeholder engagement
The Dual Prevention Pill (DPP), a combination of PrEP and combined oral contraception (COC), offers a novel, female-controlled option for HIV and unintended pregnancy prevention. However, new technologies like the DPP often face delays in regulatory approval and uptake due to limited stakeholder involvement early in the introduction process. This article in AIDS Care, authored by AVAC Fellow Rhoda Msiska, AVAC staff members Kate Segal and Cindra Feuer, and Newton Donkola, demonstrates how early, multisectoral stakeholder engagement could accelerate DPP approval and adoption in Zambia.
Source: AIDS Care
#Aids2026: Three HIV announcements South Africa made in Rio
Bhekisisa unpacks three announcements from the International Aids Conference in Rio could mean for the future of HIV prevention in South Africa. Following the announcement that Merck has granted generic licenses for the monthly HIV prevention pill alimatravir before trials are complete, AVAC's Executive Director Mitchell Warren commented on the news. “We don’t yet know if the medicine will work, so Merck is taking a risk. But, in my opinion, it’s a wise strategic risk,” Warren said.
Source: Bhekisisa
Pricing pivotal as HIV drug advances offer ‘choice’
Speaking to SciDev.Net, AVAC Executive Director Mitchell Warren commented on trial results of long-acting HIV drugs that expand choice in both prevention and treatment. While the results signal significant promise, success depends on pricing, integration, and delivery. “The field needs to move with even greater speed, scale and equity in translating these results into public health impact,” Warren said.
Source: SciDev.Net
Fauci praised as ‘hero’ by public health experts after Senate hearing
In response to the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee subponeaing and questioning Dr. Anthony Fauci, AVAC submitted a letter of support for Dr. Fauci. "We implore the committee to cease its erroneous investigations and harassment of renowned scientists and public servants such as Dr. Fauci, whose career, track-record, and devotion to public health research and development has changed the very course of the HIV epidemic at home and abroad," AVAC Executive Director Mitchell Warren wrote to the Committee.
Source: USA Today
The Human Pain Behind Global HIV Funding Cuts
At AIDS 2026, advocates reflected on the human impact of HIV funding cuts. Navita Jain, a Senior Program Manager at AVAC, explained, “We were in year eight of a 10-year project, really getting momentum going and accelerating prevention research, and the cuts had a massive effect, with no guidance provided or a plan for a way forward.”
Source: POZ
showing 1-10 of 852