Today, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced that the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) will interpret and enforce Section 1557 sex discrimination protections to include discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. Section 1557…
Today is the National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG). Howard Brown Health condemns the national crisis of MMIWG, and we stand in solidarity with Indigenous communities in honoring the memory of those lost…
Today, Howard Brown recognizes and honors International Transgender Day of Visibility. Held every year on March 31, International Transgender Day of Visibility is an opportunity for all of us to recognize and celebrate transgender, gender nonconforming, and non-binary people. Just…
Over a year into the pandemic, equitable progress has not been made to address the racial disparities in health outcomes that have existed and been exacerbated throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. In short, systemic racism made Black, Indigenous and Latinx/e communities…
Howard Brown mourns the loss of eight lives, the majority of whom were Asian women, to an act of hatred and violence committed earlier this week. We stand in solidarity with Asian immigrant, Asian American, and Pacific Islander communities across…
The state of Illinois recently expanded eligibility criteria for the COVID-19 vaccine—called Phase 1B Plus—to include people with certain high-risk conditions. However, the list of qualifying conditions does not yet include people living with HIV (PLWH). This is at odds…
Last week, the Illinois HIV Action Alliance (IHAA), Senator Robert Peters, and Representative Carol Ammons introduced SB655, legislation that would repeal outdated and stigmatizing laws criminalizing people living with HIV (PLWH). Under current Illinois law, PLWH can be criminally prosecuted…
On February 22, 2021, Governor Pritzker signed House Bill 3653 into law, bringing about historic and critically needed reforms to the criminal justice system in Illinois. This bill, authored by the Legislative Black Caucus and passed by the Illinois General…