Tune into Out-FM on Tues., August 4, 2026 from 8:00-9:00 pm ET, on​ WBAI/NY​, 99.5 FM​, or livestreaming at wbai.org/listen-live

3 minute preview Video of Health GAP Exec. Director Asia Russell Discussing Protest of US Global AIDS Cuts. (click 2 headed arrow to expand to full screen or click on view in youtube.)

The audio file containing the full show will be posted by Wednesday evening allowing you to stream the show or use the green down arrow to download mp3 file.

On January 20th 2025, President Trump signed an executive order pausing funding for the Presidential Emergency Program for AIDS Relief or PEPFAR for short. PEPFAR is the bilateral program which delivers drugs, funding for medical personel, testing and education to address the worldwide pandemic of AIDS. The 2025 pause in global AIDS funding caused panic among the agencies, clinics and health departments in the countries hardest hit by AIDS as they only had drugs for a few months in stock. While the pause was temporary, full funding was never restored leading to closure of 1700 prevention programs, healthcare centers and caused stock outs of AIDS drugs that interrupted the treatment of People With AIDS in many countries, especially in Africa.

The pause in global AIDS funding was partially reversed by protests by the organization Health GAP, which was founded in 1998 by Dr. Allan Berkman, Housing Works, ACT UP/NY & ACT UP/Philadelphia. Just how much has been restored has been obscured by the Trump administration.

However In June of this year the State Department had obligated, or pledged, $2.5 billion less than congressionally mandated by the same time in the funding cycle as the program expended in 2024. The PEPFAR Budget is about $4.6 billion, so this is a massive cut to funding.

This year, during a preconference session at the International AIDS Conference in Rio de Janiero Brazil, Healthgap and other AIDS organizations disrupted the speech of Jeffrey Graham, Trump’s US Global AIDS Coordinator demanding release of the funds.

Joining us to discuss this protest and others held at the International AIDS Conference in Brazil is Asia Russell, executive director of Health Gap who has been organizing and protesting at the Conference.

Russell will discuss the campaigns to push countries like France which used Trump's slashing of global AIDS contributions to cut theirs by 60%.

She will also discuss the campaign by the Brazilian people to get access to a highly effective HIV/Prevention drug requiring 2 injections/year that was tested on Brazilians but is now unaffordable because of the super high price tag. The drug costs $28,000/year in the US, but only costs $40 for a years supply.