PEPFAR news and links

20 February 2025. Related: News.

This list of links and resources related to the US decision to cancel international aid is frequently updated. Selected latest news posted first.

1. US government documents
2. Community resources including impact
3. Scientific impact and medical journals
4. Mainstream news
5. Court actions and legal challenges
6. Information for people living with HIV

Selected latest news

Public Citizen, nonprofits sue Trump administration to reverse freeze on foreign aid funding [10 Feb] – with updated court documents [Feb 19]
citizen.org/news/nonprofits-sue-trump-administration-to-reverse-freeze-on-foreign-aid-funding
Two US NGOs filed a lawsuit in the US seeking immediate relief to the freeze on international aid.
Court documents (15-page PDF) | Press release
Government response [Feb 18]
Plaintiff response – motion for civil contempt [Feb 19]
Community Jessica Doe witness statement [Feb 19]

GroundUp. HIV patients go weeks without medicines after US aid cut [Feb 18]
groundup.org.za/article/arv-treatment-disrupted-by-us-funding-cuts/
Impact of stopping HIV and TB meds in South Africa.

JIAS. Early impacts of the PEPFAR stop‐work order: a rapid assessment. [Feb 18]
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/jia2.26423
Community activist paper summarising the  STOP-WORK order.

UNAIDS. Update on impacts of US shifts on the global HIV response [Feb 18]
www.unaids.org/en/resources/presscentre/featurestories/2025/february/20250218_weekly-update-impact-us-shift
UNAIDS summary 6-page report from 39 PEPFAR countries with nearly all reporting disruptions in US-funded programmes. All UNAIDS responses.

STOP TB Partnership. Impact of Funding Freeze on TB Response in High TB Burden Countries/ [Feb 16]
stoptb.org/news/impact-funding-freeze-tb-response-high-tb-burden-countries
Report on the impact of USAID on diagnosis and treatment of TB in 12 high-incidence countries. These include Bangladesh, Cambodia, Ethiopia, India, Kenya, Nigeria, Pakistan, Phillipines, Tajikistan and Tanzania.

NILE Post. Uganda’s HIV Fight in Jeopardy as USAID Funding Ends [Feb 17]
nilepost.co.ug/health/243416/uganda-s-hiv-fight-in-jeopardy-as-usaid-funding-ends
Ugandan mainstream press reporting on impact of loosing US funding.

1. US government documents

Feb 7
Executive order. Addressing egregious actions of the republic of South Africa.
whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/02/addressing-egregious-actions-of-the-republic-of-south-africa/
Trump cancels aid to South Africa in a particularly strange document offering refugee status to Afrikaner’s using a US agency he has already dissolved.

Feb 6
US government policy on waiver: HIV Care & Treatment and Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission Activities Approved Under PEPFAR Limited Waiver
drive.google.com/file/d/17cLa2FF8kZtpGzAzyMxcgjMA_DgTSNN3/view

Feb 1
US Secretary of State memo: PEPFAR waiver guidance
docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vQgNTpC6F5oaOnkebQokJ_2eYgM_IcQNT7alIL6R3P16Ef4Z0pmQby3Y1eHbJcTxK_yJ8EPVNiibxON/pu
The waiver seems to include HIV care and treatment, PMTCT, HIV testing and counselling BUT excludes HIV prevention for everyone else, PrEP (except PMTCT), gender based violence, DREAMS, OVC, voluntary medical male circumcision.
List of PEPFAR programs affected and not affected by the waiver

Feb 1
Info Memo for the PEPFAR Implementing Agencies and PEPFAR Country  Coordinators from US DEPT of State
PEPFAR’s limited waiver has not taken effect. Implementing partners still awaiting guidance from agencies and PEPFAR. Unclear if waiver is needed for each country? PMI requested a waiver 

Jan 29
SECRETARY OF STATE Marco Rubio press release.
Emergency Humanitarian Waiver to Foreign Assistance Pause
state.gov/emergency-humanitarian-waiver-to-foreign-assistance-pause-2/

Jan 24
DEVEX posting of an unclassified memo
An copy of the memo sent on 24 January instructing a pause on all international aid until it is assessed to check it in line with the new presidential policies.

Jan 20
The White House. Reevaluating and realigning United States foreign and executive order.
whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/01/reevaluating-and-realigning-united-states-foreign-aid/
Executive order that started everything.

PEPFAR website. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief.
state.gov/pepfar/
Founded in 2003, PEPFAR provides HIV treatment and care to more than 20 million people living with HIV in more than 60 countries.

2. Community resources

Feb 16
STOP TB Partnership. Impact of Funding Freeze on TB Response in High TB Burden Countries [Feb 16]
https://www.stoptb.org/news/impact-funding-freeze-tb-response-high-tb-burden-countries
Report on the impact of USAID on diagnosis and treatment of TB in 12 high-incidence countries. These include Bangladesh, Cambodia, Ethiopia, India, Kenya, Nigeria, Pakistan, Phillipines, Tajikistan and Tanzania.

Feb 12
Call from Global Health Council for community impact stories [12 Feb]
docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdE16xFr0_Q6IjCBbn6O4d2NvwAYNZME26mZzJKn-dRZAou2A/viewform

TB Community Coordination Hub: TB Response Stop Work Order Pulse Check [12 Feb]
globaltbcab.org/tb-news/tb-community-coordination-hub-tb-response-stop-work-order-pulse-check/
TB community survey on impact of recent changes – deadline 17 Feb.

Feb 10
CHANGE press release on impact in South Africa. [10 Feb]
South Africa’s HIV Response in Crisis as Illegal US Funding Freeze Pushes Health System to the Brink.

No Time To Wait [Feb]
pepfarwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/UKPC-no-time-to-wait.pdf
Rapid results from Uganda Key Populations Consortium (UKPC) – 20-page report.

Public Citizen, nonprofits sue Trump administration to reverse freeze on foreign aid funding [10 Feb]
www.citizen.org/news/nonprofits-sue-trump-administration-to-reverse-freeze-on-foreign-aid-funding/
Two US NGOs filed a lawsuit in the US seeking immediate relief to the freeze on international aid.

Feb 9
PEPFAR watch. Deadly Pause – Update 1
https://pepfarwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Update-1-Deadly-Pause.pdf

Feb 7
African Women Prevention Community Accountability Board (AWPCAB).  Call to Action: Sustaining HIV Prevention Gains for Women and Girls in Africa
awpcab.org/call-to-action-sustaining-hiv-prevention-gains-for-women-and-girls-in-africa/

Feb 6
POZ.com. Thousands Protest at U.S. State Department to Restore Global HIV and AIDS Programs.
poz.com/article/now-thousands-protest-us-state-department-restore-global-hiv-aids-programs

Feb 5
Trump administration’s foreign assistance stop-work and stop-funding order and the state department’s partial waiver for PEPFAR are life threatening
healthjusticeinitiative.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/FINAL-SHeet-1-CHANGE-WAIVER-6_2_25.pdf (PDF)

US court orders temporarily restrain the “stop-work” & “stop-payment” orders on us foreign assistance, also affecting PEPFAR – explanation of temporary restraining orders (TROS)
healthjusticeinitiative.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Info-Sheet-2-TRO-CHANGE-6-Feb.pdf (PDF)

APCOM statement. The funding freeze is an attack on our community.
apcom.org/apcom-statement-funding-freeze-threat-our-community
Impact in the Asia Pacific region where the aim to reach 95:95:95 by 2030 from current 78:65:65 levels. 6.7 million people are living with HIV in the region.

Feb 2
The Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF)
A Look at US Government Health Data Taken Offline
Details of web pages and resources that have been deleted or edited.

Feb 2
HIV i-Base – Impact of US elections and executive orders on global health: waiver covers PEPFAR with restrictions
i-base.info/htb/50142
Timeline review of the first 12 days with key links.

Jan 31
PEPFAR Watch – Deadly pause: Impact of the STOP WORK order.
pepfarwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/PEPFAR-Watch-Deadly-Pause.pdf
Community review on the impact on PEPFAR organisations of the STOP WORK order.

ACT! AP alarmed over Trump’s “stop-work” order; immediately calls for US government to resume and honor its commitments to ending TB by 2030
hapcaso.org/official-statement-of-the-activists-coalition-on-tb-asia-pacific-act-ap-in-light-of-trumps-stop-work-order/

ProPublica. “People Will Die”: The Trump Administration Said It Lifted Its Ban on Lifesaving Humanitarian Aid. That’s Not True.
propublica.org/article/trump-state-department-usaid-humanitarian-aid-freeze-ukraine-gaza-sudan

Jan 29
AVAC. Introducing Global Health Watch! Tracking US actions and their impact
avac.org/blog/introducing-global-health-watch-tracking-us-actions-and-their-impact/
Newsletter from a leading US community organisation with international programmes.

Jan 28
WHO statement. WHO statement on potential global threat to people living with HIV.
who.int/news/item/28-01-2025-who-statement-on-potential-global-threat-to-people-living-with-hiv
Early statement from WHO on the importance and urgency of continuing support for PEPFAR.

Jan 25 and updated daily in real-time
PEPFAR impact calculator (individual modeller)
pepfarimpact.vercel.app/
Website using basic PEPFAR data to calculate the impact of 20 million people stopping ART. Important caution is the figure on people dying are not accurate and probably reflect what will happen in about six months. For example, no-one is likely to have died so far but it currently lists >4000 deaths.

Jan 24
amFAR. Impact of Stop Work Orders forPEPFAR Programs. [Undated but after 20 January 2025].
amfar.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Impact-of-Stop-Work-Orders-for-PEPFAR-Programs-2.pdf

AmfAR press release. ­Trump Administration’s Order Requiring Immediate Suspension of All HIV Services Provided by PEPFAR Will Place Lives at Risk
Trump Administration’s Order Requiring Immediate Suspension of All HIV Services Provided by PEPFAR Will Place Lives at Risk
Early press release from amfAR that include figures and examples of the numbers of people that will be affected.

3. Scientific impact research and medical journals

Feb 18
JIAS. Early impacts of the PEPFAR stop‐work order: a rapid assessment. [18 Feb]
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/jia2.26423
Community activist paper summarising the  STOP-WORK order.

UNAIDS. Update on impacts of US shifts on the global HIV response [Feb 18]
www.unaids.org/en/resources/presscentre/featurestories/2025/february/20250218_weekly-update-impact-us-shift
Summary 6-page report from 39 PEPFAR countries with nearly all reporting disruptions in US-funded programmes.
All UNAIDS responses.

Feb 15
Guide to the impact of HIV programmes in Africa.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXdgsC8bDJk
4-minute YouTube video by leading HIV statistician Andrew Phillips on the early impact of stopping aid on mortality and transmission and impact over 10 years.

Feb 8
The Lancet. Ukraine HIV services severely curtailed by US aid freeze
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(25)00235-1/fulltext

Feb 7
Lancet editorial: American chaos: standing up for health and medicine
thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(25)00237-5/fulltext
Editorial comment from this leading medical journal.

Lancet review. PEPFAR under review: what’s at stake for PEPFAR’s future. 
thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(25)00258-2/fulltext
Review on the importance of re-establishing PEPFAR with a bi-partisan coalition in the US but also with reforms including transferring to country-led programmes supported by a wide coalition of practitioners, civil society, researchers and governments.  

Feb 1
Potential clinical and economic impacts of cutbacks in the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief Program in South Africa: A Modeling Analysis. Gandhi AR et al. Annals of Internal Medicine. (1 February 2025).
oi.org/10.7326/ANNALS-24-0110

4. Mainstream news

All major news outlets will be reporting and updating news as it changes. A few outlets are included: (Bhekisisa, NYTimes, Devex etc) – but there will be many more, including in every PEPFAR country.

Feb 18
GroundUp. HIV patients go weeks without medicines after US aid cut [Feb 18]
groundup.org.za/article/arv-treatment-disrupted-by-us-funding-cuts/
Impact of stopping HIV and TB meds in South Africa.

Feb 17
NILE Post. Uganda’s HIV Fight in Jeopardy as USAID Funding Ends [Feb 17]
https://nilepost.co.ug/health/243416/uganda-s-hiv-fight-in-jeopardy-as-usaid-funding-ends
Ugandan mainstream press reporting on impact of loosing US funding.

Feb 12
Devex. The dismantling continues: Hundreds of USAID awards terminated
devex.com/news/the-dismantling-continues-hundreds-of-usaid-awards-terminated-109387
The Trump administration has begun to formally cancel hundreds of USAID contracts and grants, according to several sources and internal documents.

NY Times. Lifesaving Aid Remains Halted Worldwide Despite Rubio’s Promise [12 Feb]
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/12/us/politics/usaid-waivers-rubio.html
Impact of financial freeze on global partners and contracts.

Feb 8
CNN. Short video on Instagram including people living with HIV in Uganda and Winnie Byanyima on why USAID .
instagram.com/reel/DFzKE1KP8I2/
USAID is a lifeline to millions. “I feel like the world is ending tomorrow … I don’t know if I will I be alive or dead.” “USAID benefits US companies at home”.

Feb 7
Devex. Trump will double USAID staff numbers to 600, up from 300 yesterday
devex.com/news/trump-will-double-usaid-staff-numbers-to-600-up-from-300-yesterday-109330

Feb 6
Devex. >95% of UNAID staff fired
devex.com/news

Bhekisisa – What could SA lose if PEPFAR is stopped? We work it out
bhekisisa.org/health-news-south-africa/2025-02-06-what-could-sa-lose-if-pepfar-is-stopped-we-work-it-out/
Investigation into health and economic impact in South Africa and how to move forward.

HIV PrEP and vaccine clinical trials wrecked for sponsors and participants:
via New York Times
nytimes.com/2025/02/06/health/usaid-clinical-trials-funding-trump.html

Feb 5
Daily Maverick (South Africa). Pressure mounts on Health Minister Motsoaledi to remedy ‘catastrophic consequences’ of US aid freeze
dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-02-05-pressure-mounts-on-health-minister-motsoaledi-to-remedy-catastrophic-consequences-of-us-aid-freeze/

Feb 3
Devex.com. USAID closes headquarters Monday amid Trump transition chaos.
devex.com/news/scoop-usaid-closes-headquarters-monday-amid-trump-transition-chaos-109252

Face the Nation Head of House Foreign Affairs Committee, Rep Mast
Rep. Brian Mast says he supports potential plan moving USAID into the State Department
YouTube video of nasty views about not funding ART.

Feb 3
Bhekisisa (South African independent journalists)
Too little, too late: What a PEPFAR waiver can’t do.

Feb 2
Reuters. Trump to cut off funding for South Africa over expropriation act.
reuters.com/world/africa/trump-cut-off-all-future-funding-south-africa-2025-02-02/

Feb 1
Inside Medicine
BREAKING NEWS: CDC orders mass retraction and revision of submitted research across all science and medicine journals. Banned terms must be scrubbed.

Devex. Exclusive: Some PEPFAR programs get waiver to restart operation
devex.com/news/exclusive-some-pepfar-programs-get-waiver-to-restart-operations-109248

Sirus X Megyn Kelly Show – Interview with Secretary Marco Rubio
https://youtu.be/S5RJwmw1ihE?si=RJh1xFXaS8js5xg
Rubio argues only 12 cents in every aid dollar gets to recipients.

New York Times
Health Programs Shutter Around the World After Trump Pauses Foreign Aid
NYT article (may need registration).

Jan 31
New York Times. Health resources vanish following DEI and gender orders
nytimes.com/2025/01/31/health/trump-cdc-dei-gender.html
NYT article (may need registration)

Jan 30
Devex. Confusion, fear as PEPFAR partners suspend HIV services.
devex.com/news/confusion-fear-as-pepfar-partners-suspend-hiv-services-109218

Devex. Atul Gawande. Stop-work could destroy US global health infrastructure
devex.com/news/atul-gawande-stop-work-could-destroy-us-global-health-infrastructure-109174
Article on the potential bad impact on the US economy.

5. Court actions and legal challenges

Although some of these legal challenges are on internal US policy they are good examples to show how Trump is being resisted.

Litigation Tracker: Legal Challenges to Trump Administration Actions
justsecurity.org/107087/tracker-litigation-legal-challenges-trump-administration/
This litigation tracker has listings for legal challenges to Trump with drop-down menus for specific topics.

Feb 19
Public Citizen, nonprofits sue Trump administration to reverse freeze on foreign aid funding [10 Feb] – with updated court documents [Feb 19]
citizen.org/news/nonprofits-sue-trump-administration-to-reverse-freeze-on-foreign-aid-funding/
Two US NGOs filed a lawsuit in the US seeking immediate relief to the freeze on international aid.
Court documents (15-page PDF) | Press release
Government response [Feb 18]
Plaintiff response – motion for civil contempt [Feb 19]
Community Jessica Doe witness statement [Feb 19]

Feb 14
US judge orders Trump administration to temporarily restore foreign aid funding
euronews.com/2025/02/14/us-federal-judge-orders-trump-administration-to-restore-funding-for-foreign-aid-programmes
Second case with temporary ruling to restart funding by US District Judge Carl Nichols in Washington.

STAT News. Federal judge halts Trump administration cuts to NIH research payments in 22 states.
statnews.com/2025/02/10/nih-indirect-costs-lawsuit-state-attorneys-general-sue-to-block-research-spending-cuts/
US Federal Judge block internal US funding is 22 States with hearing due on 21 Feb.

Feb 7
Judge pauses Trump administration effort to gut USAID’s workforce by thousands
nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/judge-pause-trump-administration-effort-gut-usaids-workforce-thousands-rcna191280
Hours before USAID staff were due to be fired a US judge order a pause for a week.

Feb 6
Public Citizen. Government employee unions sue Trump administration for shutting down USAID
citizen.org/news/government-employee-unions-sue-trump-administration-for-shutting-down-usaid/

US court listing UNAID policy challenged in the court
storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.277213/gov.uscourts.dcd.277213.1.0.pdf

Feb 5
Reuters. US judge blocks Trump from sending transgender women to men’s prisons.
reuters.com/legal/us-judge-blocks-trump-sending-transgender-women-mens-prisons-2025-02-05

Reuters. Judge blocks Trump’s birthright citizenship order nationwide
reuters.com/legal/second-us-judge-blocks-trumps-birthright-citizenship-order-2025-02-05/
A second US judge challenges Trump on birthright status.

BBC. Judge blocks Trump’s bid to restrict birthright citizenship
bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvg8kk9j3j0o
Internal US challenge (not PEPFAR but good to know)

The Guardian. US judge temporarily blocks transfer of incarcerated trans women to men’s prisons
theguardian.com/us-news/2025/feb/05/incarcerated-trans-women
Internal US challenge (not PEPFAR but good to know)

Jan 29
AP news. Federal judge temporarily blocks Trump administration freeze on federal grants and loans
apnews.com/article/donald-trump-pause-federal-grants-aid-f9948b9996c0ca971f0065fac85737ce
Early legal challenge on federal loans (internal US, not PEPFAR)

NYTimes. Federal Judge Blocks Trump’s Freeze of Federal Grant Funds
nytimes.com/2025/01/28/us/politics/states-lawsuit-trump-federal-grants-pause.html
A judge in Washington DC agreed that freezing of billions of dollars in congressionally-approved funding violated the law.

6. Information for people living with HIV