Trump halted funding that cut 26 million people off lifesaving anti-HIV/AIDS drugs

In a move that can only be described as heartless and catastrophic, the Trump administration has abruptly halted the distribution of lifesaving antiretroviral drugs to nearly 26 million people worldwide through the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR).

This global health program, launched in 2003 by Republican President George W. Bush, has been a beacon of hope for millions living with HIV/AIDS in some of the world’s poorest countries.

Now, with the stroke of a pen, Donald Trump has thrown their lives into chaos and condemned countless people to death.

Last week, Trump signed an executive order freezing all foreign aid—except for Israel and Egypt—for at least 90 days.

This freeze includes funding for PEPFAR, a program credited with saving 26 million lives since its inception and preventing millions of new HIV infections. But the administration didn’t stop there.

Global health officials were blindsided by an email announcing that PEPFAR’s data systems would shut down at 6 p.m. ET, cutting off access to critical information and tools.

Employees were told to save key documents and data before losing access indefinitely, sparking fears that the program may never resume.

The impact of this decision has been immediate and devastating.

Clinics are canceling appointments, patients are being turned away, and lifesaving medications—already purchased and sitting on shelves—are now barred from distribution. Health workers are in shock, and patients are facing abrupt interruptions to their treatment.

For people living with HIV, disrupted treatment can be deadly. Without consistent access to antiretroviral drugs, virus levels can spike within days, increasing the risk of transmission and potentially leading to the development of drug-resistant strains of HIV. This isn’t just a humanitarian crisis—it’s a global health time bomb.

“The partners we collaborate with are in shock, and they do not know what to do because their lifesaving mission and commitment has been breached,” said Asia Russell, executive director of Health Gap, a global HIV treatment organization. Russell called Trump’s policy “catastrophic” and “much more cruel” than previous cuts to global health programs. She’s right. This isn’t just a pause—it’s a death sentence for millions.

The Trump administration’s justification for this cruelty is as flimsy as it is callous.

State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce claimed it’s a “moral imperative” for the U.S. to “no longer… blindly dole out money with no return for the American people.”

This argument is not only morally bankrupt but also staggeringly shortsighted.

The U.S. is the wealthiest nation in the world, and PEPFAR’s $6.5 billion budget is a fraction of what this country spends on military aid and weapons systems.

Moreover, a global health crisis—like the emergence of a new, drug-resistant strain of HIV—would inevitably reach American shores. This isn’t just about helping others; it’s about protecting ourselves.

The consequences of this decision will be felt most acutely in countries like South Africa, where PEPFAR funds 20% of the HIV prevention and treatment budget. Researchers estimate that without PEPFAR, as many as 600,000 people in South Africa alone could die in the next decade. In poorer nations like South Sudan, which rely even more heavily on PEPFAR, the devastation will be unimaginable.

Meanwhile, the Trump administration has gone even further, barring federal employees from communicating with the World Health Organization (WHO). This includes being on the same email chains or Zoom calls, effectively cutting off collaboration with one of the world’s most critical health organizations. It’s a move that reeks of pettiness and isolationism, and it will only exacerbate the global health crisis Trump has created.

PEPFAR has long been a bipartisan success story, celebrated by Republicans and Democrats alike. George W. Bush marked its 20th anniversary in 2023 at his presidential library, calling it one of his proudest achievements. But now, Trump is dismantling it, seemingly without a second thought for the lives it sustains. Some Republicans have criticized PEPFAR, claiming it indirectly funds abortion—a baseless and hypocritical argument, given that untreated HIV in pregnant mothers leads to higher rates of mother-to-child transmission. If anything, PEPFAR is a profoundly pro-life program.

The world is watching in horror as Trump’s administration plunges millions into despair. “Anybody who understands the basic biology of the HIV virus is going to say this is a disaster,” said Henry Zakumumpa, a health services researcher at Uganda’s Makerere University. “Any interruption in treatment, any missed treatment, you are killing someone.”