AVAC: New analysis shows decline in PEPFAR

A new analysis published in Nature Health finds that PEPFAR-supported HIV treatment declined in 2025 following the US Administration’s foreign aid freeze, with approximately 2 million fewer people reported as receiving PEPFAR-supported antiretroviral therapy than in 2024 (a 10% decrease). Of the 26 countries examined, treatment support fell across all, though some of the decline reflects changes in how PEPFAR classifies and reports treatment support rather than patients losing access to care. South Africa was called out in the analyses, accounting for most of the treatment declines—individuals previously counted as receiving direct PEPFAR support were reclassified as benefiting from broader health system investments, resulting in a net treatment decline of about 95,000 people (1.8%). The authors conclude a “decline of ∼1.73 million individuals on direct PEPFAR-supported treatment and an increase of ∼1.64 million individuals on treatment benefitting solely from the programme’s broader support to health systems, yielding a net treatment loss of 94,881 (−1.8%)”.