HIV Long-Term Survivors Awareness Day

HIV Long-Term Survivors Awareness Day is an opportunity to raise awareness that leads to action. The selection of June 5 for this annual observance coincides with the anniversary of the first official reporting of what became known as the AIDS epidemic in 1981. June 5, 1981 is considered the start of the HIV epidemic when the CDC first reported on five cases of a mysterious disease affecting young gay men. Today, HIV Long-Term Survivors (HLTS) represent a diverse group of about 300,000 people who were diagnosed with HIV before the advent of Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy or HAART in 1996. For more information, please visit the HIV.gov website.