Content Warning: many of these updates include information about harmful attacks on Black, Indigenous and people of color (BIPOC) and LGBTQ+ folks.

🔥 Hot Topic 🔥

FLORIDA IS A TEST CASE:  PROTECT ACCESS TO HIV MEDICATION & CARE

The Florida Department of Health (FDOH) has proposed gutting the state AIDS Drug Assistance Program (ADAP), which provides people with low income who have limited or no prescription drug coverage access to HIV medication. Under Governor Ron DeSantis’ administration, the FDOH decision to slash ADAP eligibility, eliminate insurance premium coverage, and remove certain HIV medication will put the health and lives of tens of thousands Floridian’s at risk.

What’s going on? In January, people living with HIV and advocates learned that Florida was proposing sweeping changes to the state ADAP program. This is a rapidly evolving situation and information is subject to change. From the latest reporting, on March 1, 2026, the following changes will go into effect:

  • Reduce the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) eligibility threshold from 400% FPL to 130% FPL. Co-pay assistance will still be available for people who are insured and make under 400% FPL.
  • Eliminate ADAP insurance premium assistance. People whose insurance premiums are currently paid by ADAP will be required to assume full responsibility for premium payments
  • Eliminate Biktarvy, the most prescribed HIV medication, from the ADAP formulary.


Why is Florida doing this now?
The long story short is: we don’t know! Florida claims it is making this decision because of funding constraints. However, Florida refuses to share where the “budget shortfall” of $120 million came from that “requires” these radical changes. Additionally, Florida rolled out this seismic policy change chaotically and with less than two months’ notice. This does not leave Floridian’s on the ADAP programs realistic time or ability to secure affordable alternatives to care and will, ultimately, result in people losing insurance and/or disrupted HIV care. Slashing access to care without sufficient notice, public accountability, or plan for continuity of care is unacceptable. 

What is the impact?
Florida has one of the highest HIV rates and one of the highest ADAP enrollment numbers in the US. These changes will effectively strip an estimated 16,000 people – that is more than half of all Floridians currently relying on ADAP – of access to the most effective and widely used HIV treatments. Moreover, because these changes are so sweeping, likely all of the approximately 30,000 people served by FL ADAP will be impacted in some way. A two-month transition window is not enough to prevent the harm this will cause. 

Women (cis and trans) living with HIV, especially women of color, are disproportionately impacted. 42% of clients served by ADAP programs in 2022 were people of color, predominantly Black/African American. This is a racial and gender justice issue. Black women make up a disproportionate share of HIV diagnoses among women nationally. Additionally, trans women face stacked barriers, especially trans women of color who face discrimination in employment and  healthcare. Policies that destabilize treatment will widen the disparities, deepen inequities, and increase preventable harm.

TAKE ACTION TO PROTECT ACCESS TO HIV MEDICATION & CARE 

Florida is the blueprint – Other states are watching and could be planning to follow Floridia’s lead, which will have devastating health consequences for people living with HIV and specifically women (cis and trans), gender diverse and transgender people who are disproportionately affected in these states. Tell your representatives that these policy changes are unacceptable and demand:  

  • Pause the March 1, 2026 changes until the Florida Department of Health releases financial shortfall documentation. 
  • Ensure continuity-of care-directive to prevent medication or treatment interruptions. 
  • Hold a legislative oversight hearing, including a Health Resources & Services Administration (HRSA) forensic audit. 

LGBTQ+ Health, Rights, and Justice

Access to Healthcare

  • A partial government shutdown started over the weekend. The House is looking at a five-bill funding package and a two-week funding for the Department of Homeland Security. Tensions remain high because increased DHS funding in a time of escalating immigration violence only continues to fuel Trump’s deadly detention, deportation, and disappearance machine.  
  • A new regulation allows the U.S to block asylum claims because of “emergency public health concerns generated by a communicable disease,” which gives immigration officers another tool to discriminate against migrants based on health status.   
  • The White House released an executive order designating Fentanyl as a weapon of mass destruction, which will have devastating impacts on harm reduction efforts.A federal court ordered Florida’s Medicaid agency to pause its efforts to remove roughly 500,000 Floridians from the state Medicaid program because the termination notifications “border[ed] on the incomprehensible.” This case, called Chianne D. v. Weida, is a major win for healthcare access and due process.

Reproductive Health, Rights, and Justice

Economic Justice

Ending Criminalization

  • An internal memo from the Department of Homeland Security, which was leaked this month, purports to allow ICE agents to enter homes without a judicial warrant. This policy violates guardrails in constitutional law and immigration policy, according to experts. 
  • SCOTUS blocked deployment of National Guard to Chicago, as a result Trump pulled troops from Oregon, California, Illinois. However, the Trump administration escalated Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) presence in Minnesota after ICE murdered Renee Good. Both Minnesota & Illinois sued the Trump Administration for the federal invasion of ICE.
  • Despite state law prohibiting it, many police departments collaborate with ICE. 
    • Take Action: Contact your representatives and demand the support for the Protect Immigration Act, which would limit the federal government’s ability to collaborate with local and state police for immigration enforcement.  

Election Updates

  • Because the Supreme Court ruling reversed the lower court’s order in December, Texas is now able to use a racially discriminatory map in the 2026 midterms. The battle over Texas’ map will likely continue as Texas is expected to appeal to the Supreme Court.
  • Texas has officially shared data regarding voter registration with the Department of Justice, which is sparking concern over data privacy and federal law. 
  • In November, the Supreme Court heard Louisiana v. Callias, which is a case about the Voting Rights Act (VRA) and racial gerrymandering. Based on oral arguments, experts expect that the Supreme Court holding could further weaken the VRA and open the door to erasure of majority Black and Brown districts.