Congresswoman Barbara Lee's One-Two Punch on HIV Criminalization (2011)

On Thursday, Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-CA) sent a letter to President Obama calling for a renewed effort to reduce HIV transmission and expand access to care. In the letter, Congresswoman Lee made three requests; 1) for President Obama to announce a new goal of treating 6 million people by 2013; 2) to announce a new initiative to expand HIV prevention, care and treatment activities in U.S. jurisdictions with rising HIV incidence and growing AIDS Drug Assistance Programs waiting lists; and 3) to review federal and state laws, policies, regulations, and judicial proceedings that involve criminal cases against people living with HIV/AIDS.

This letter further demonstrates Congresswoman Lee's commitment to addressing the issue of HIV criminalization, an issue she took on last month with her introduction of the REPEAL HIV Discrimination Act. This was the first piece of federal legislation to call for an evaluation of all federal and state laws, policies, and regulations regarding the criminal prosecution of individuals for HIV-related offenses.