As SNAP benefits run low, people with HIV can struggle to stay on treatment

Despite major advances in HIV treatment, food and housing insecurity can still make it difficult for people living with the virus to take their medication consistently, according to an article by WHYY News.Dr. Aaron Richterman, an infectious diseases specialist at Penn Medicine in Philadelphia, told WHYY that he would often hear patients say, “How am I supposed to take my medicine when I don’t have enough to eat?”Some of Richterman’s patients at Penn rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, to buy food. He set out to examine whether the timing of their monthly benefits was associated with how consistently they took their HIV medication.Richterman and his colleagues used electronic pill bottle caps to monitor medication adherence. Their study, published in JAMA Network Open, analyzed data from 54 adults living with HIV in Philadelphia who experienced food insecurity. Participants took their medication more consistently in the weeks after receiving SNAP benefits, but adherence declined toward the end of the monthly benefits cycle. The researchers noted that the study’s small sample and focus on one city limited how broadly its findings could apply.Related: How SNAP cuts will disproportionately impact some LGBTQ+ peopleToday, most people living with HIV who take their medication as prescribed can achieve an undetectable viral load within six months of starting treatment. Treatment helps people live long, healthy lives, and those who achieve and maintain an undetectable viral load cannot transmit HIV through sex. This globally accepted scientific consensus is known as U=U, or “undetectable equals untransmittable.”But the stress of not having enough food or stable housing can make it harder to maintain a medication routine. Treatment interruptions can allow the virus to multiply, threatening a person’s health and potentially increasing the risk of sexual transmission if viral suppression is lost.Richterman said the results underscor