Aging & HIV: An introduction to legal issues facing people living and aging with HIV

By the year 2030, 70% of people living with HIV are projected to be over the age of 50, but the country’s social services and healthcare infrastructure are not prepared to address their needs. Discrimination, criminalization, and loss of autonomy are huge challenges that can be barriers preventing people living with HIV from aging with dignity.

This legal primer written by CHLP Staff Attorney Kae Greenberg explores the unique issues facing the rapidly expanding population of older Americans living with HIV. The focus of the primer is to help PLAHIV identify and overcome the legal barriers to aging with dignity. It explains existing support systems and serves as a guide for advocates to identify priority areas for policy work. This publication explores three areas of the law that impact PLAHIV:

• Federal laws such as the Americans with Disabilities Act that protect PLHIV from discrimination and the agencies that can assist with remedying complaints. 
• The criminalization of PLHIV and the collateral consequences of criminal legal system involvement and criminal records on PLAHIV. 
• The barriers to and techniques for protecting the power of PLAHIV to make decisions about their health and medical care.