Dear John,

As you may remember, Senate Bill 1138 was introduced by Senators Mamie Locke and Jennifer McClellan in the 2021 General Assembly session. This historic bill successfully modernized outdated HIV laws, making Virginia the first southern state to do so. It was signed into law by Governor Northam on March 31 and went into effect on July 1, 2021.

These critical updates to the Code of Virginia will decrease barriers to prevention and treatment services and also bring an HIV diagnosis in line with other sexually transmitted infections, which helps to reduce stigma. We hope that these critical updates help everyone feel more comfortable getting tested - the more people know their status, the more quickly we will be able to end the HIV epidemic.

To celebrate how far we've come and learn more about the work ahead, we hope that you will join us for our virtual World AIDS Day event on Wednesday, December 1st from 1:00-4:00pm.  We'll also be joined with our partners from the Positive Women's Network-USA, The SERO Project, and ECHO VA for this informative and interactive conversation. Plus, you'll get to hear stirring testimonies from Virginians directly impacted by the new law, so make sure to register for this eye-opening event!