New Listening Sessions: Opportunities to Inform Development of Next National HIV/AIDS and Viral Hepatitis Strategies

Cross-posted from the HHS.gov Hepatitis blog

The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Office of HIV/AIDS and Infectious Disease Policy (OHAIDP) will host two listening sessions to continue gathering public input for updates to the National HIV/AIDS Strategy (NHAS) and the National Viral Hepatitis Action Plan (NVHAP). Both national plans currently expire in 2020.

OHAIDP is facilitating the update process in collaboration with partners across the federal government to ensure that both strategies continue to: be responsive to pressing challenges in the nation’s HIV and viral hepatitis epidemics; remain focused on identifying and supporting effective actions by all stakeholders and on all levels with maximum impact; and be based on the latest and best scientific evidence. Although we are collecting feedback on both the NHAS and the NVHAP at the same time, the updated national strategies will remain separate and distinct plans.

The input of a broad mix of stakeholders has been the foundation for the success of the NHAS and the NVHAP to date. To extend that progress, we need your help to shape the updates. We welcome your ideas on a number of issues, including:

• What changes do you recommend making to the HIV and viral hepatitis goals and strategies?
• What opportunities do you see to further improve the efficiency, effectiveness, accountability, and impact of the nation’s response to HIV and viral hepatitis?
• What actions could the federal government take to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of funding and delivery of HIV and viral hepatitis services?
• What monitoring and evaluation methods and tools would you recommend to further improve HIV and viral hepatitis efforts?

Save the Dates for Listening Sessions

Your thoughts and feedback are important, so we are offering multiple ways for you to be heard either in person or online which will enable people from across the United States to participate. Please consider joining one of these listening sessions, register, and mark the date in your calendar:

• Tuesday, January 29, 2019: Virtual Listening Session from 1:00–3:00 p.m. (ET). All are welcome to join this online listening session. Click here to register now.
• Friday, February 22, 2019: In-person Listening Session at HHS from 11:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m. (ET) in Room 800 of the Hubert H. Humphrey Building, 200 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC, 20201. RSVP by Thursday, February 14 by sending your name, title, and organization to HepHIVStrategies@hhs.gov.

Registration is required for both sessions.  The sessions will be similar and focused on providing opportunities for the full range of stakeholders to share their ideas. More information about previous listening sessions and developing the next national strategies for HIV and viral hepatitis is featured on the HIV.gov blog and on the HHS viral hepatitis blog.

Share Your Comments in Writing.

In addition, we will soon publish a Request for Information (RFI) in the Federal Register to solicit written comments, recommendations, and ideas for updating both the NHAS and the NVHAP. As soon as the RFI is published, we will provide a link to it as well as information about its deadline for input.

All the input gathered from the listening sessions and responses to the RFI will be shared with our federal partners, who collectively will use that information to update the vision, goals, and strategies for both plans, as well as each agency’s actions for implementing them.

We look forward to hearing your ideas and input!

Read more about the National HIV/AIDS Strategy.