The American Academy of HIV Medicine (AAHIVM) is an independent organization of HIV Specialists, and HIV care providers that dedicated to promoting excellence in HIV/AIDS care and to ensuring better care for those living with AIDS and HIV disease.

The Academy has a diverse membership composed of Infectious Disease, Internal Medicine, Family Practice and General Practice providers, Nurse Practitioners, and Physician Assistants, as well as Dentists, and Pharmacists.

The AAHIVM Policy Department and Policy Committee work to advocate for the interests of HIV health care providers and to represent the voice of our members in policy-making arenas. We work to shape polices and laws in ways that represent the interests of our members and their patients and to positively impact the ability of our members to provide the best care available to their patients.

The priority level of most policy issues changes regularly as the topics rise or fall from prominence on the national or local level. AAHIVM works to keep pace with the policy matters of the day, while always striving to move forward on the issues of most concern to our members. However, there are some basic principles for which we are always striving on behalf of our members. There are certain policy principles that undergird all of our policy and advocacy efforts.

There are also specific topics that are always of priority importance to our members. We also have some policy matters of frequent and regular occurrence that AAHIVM encounters (such as annual federal budget and appropriations processes). For topics that we confront on a regular basis, we have developed some policies that drive our decisions in those areas.

Below are some our Policy Principles (Available to AAHIVM Members only):

Recognition of HIV Care as a Medical Specialty 

Workforce 

Reimbursement

Coordination and Streamlining of Government Requirements 

Interdisciplinary, Multidisciplinary Care and Coordination of Care

Information Technology for HIV Medicine

Access to Care for All People Living With HIV/AIDS 

Reduction of Healthcare Disparities

Aging HIV Population

Funding of Federal HIV/AIDS programs

Ancillary Services

HIV Testing 

HIV Research

HIV Education and Prevention

Harm Reduction


The Policy Principals listed above reflect the values of our membership in certain policy areas, and are used to determine policy priorities, decisions, partnerships, advocacy work, and statements of AAHIVM. The order of topics, as listed in this document, is not indicative of the priority level of said issue. Furthermore, on some policy issues, our membership may not have a specific policy standpoint, or may have a split in opinion on a particular subject. Some issues are not universally agreed upon by the providers that make up our membership. Other topics are too nuanced and varied for our members to agree on a permanent position. In those cases, the Academy attempts to represent our membership’s positions in their truest form, whether that is in declining to engage in a particular issue or representing the diversity of opinion that exists on an issue among our providers.

The list is not all inclusive. The AAHIVM Policy Department regularly works on specific policy matters as they emerge. To see our work in specific current issue areas, please see the National Issues page.