NAPWHA Annual General Meeting and Members Forum 2021

NAPWHA Executive Director, Aaron Cogle presented a Executive Director Report to members at the AGM 2021.

2021 – what a year! Appropriately, it’s ending with a bang!

World AIDS Day Announcement – $39 Million Over 5 Years – for PLHIV who are ineligible for Medicare

On World AIDS Day, the Commonwealth Minister for Health, the Hon. Greg Hunt announced a new investment of $39m over five years to provide HIV treatment for people with HIV who are ineligible for Medicare through a new government scheme.

This partnership between the Commonwealth and the States and Territories delivers on the Minister’s commitment at World AIDS Day last year to seek a solution to this long-standing problem.

NAPWHA Vice-President, Sarah Feagan, made announcements of new changes to the NAPWHA Board, including the welcomed appointment of Justin Xiao, and re-appointment of Simon O’Connor. Warm thanks and acknowledgements were made to Board members stepping down: Michael Brown and Secretary-Treasurer, Chris Howard. 

Justin Xiao currently works at ACON as a Community Health Promotion Officer overseeing the Sexualised Drug Use project. His intersectional lived-experience also extends his work into HIV and Asian Gay Men’s programs, including a project in collaboration with NAPWHA for the implementation of the Positive Asian Network Australia (PANA), established in 2021. Justin moved to Australia from China in 2007 and has lived in Sydney and Toronto, Canada since then. Over the years, he has been involved in a number of community organisations supporting people living with HIV and people who have sought out support for their substance use.

In the recent NAPWHA campaign marking ‘40 Years of HIV: Where to Next‘, Justin Xiao speaks of the importance of representation of diverse voices. “It’s time to focus on providing culturally appropriate care to PLHIV who are often ‘left behind’ or ‘hard to reach’. While the science of U=U has changed the ways we live with HIV, stigma and fear isn’t over yet. We must continue to create spaces where all PLHIV feel encouraged to be their best selves, and we demand those spaces.”

Video:  NAPWHA Project Officer, Eloise Monteiro presented as part of a Health Literacy Framework project report back to members at the NAPWHA AGM 2021. Community Advocates from the project made announcements of new NAPWHA-auspiced national networks: Jimmy Chen of Positive Asian Network Australia (PANA); Anth McCarthy of HetMAN Australia (Heterosexual Men Advocacy Network); and Cristian Cortes of Positive Latinx Australian  Network (PLAN)

This World AIDS Day 2021, NAPWHA will be marking the significance of our ongoing advocacy, representation, policy, and health promotion for people with HIV through a campaign reflecting on the Australian theme of 40 Years of HIV: Where to Next?