The US Government has a long history and extensive network of international collaboration
and partnerships in the fight against HIV/AIDS, providing funding, technical assistance,
and program support, starting with the Leadership and Investment in Fighting an Epidemic
(LIFE) Initiative in 1999. These collaborations increase the fundamental understanding of
HIV transmission and provide an evaluative basis for prevention and intervention success.
The current HIV/AIDS epidemic is devastating and has negatively affected many militaries
and other uniformed organizations worldwide by reducing military readiness, limiting
deployments, causing physical and emotional decline in infected individuals and their
families, posing risks to military personnel and their extended communities, and impeding
peacekeeping activities. In response to this threat, the White House urged the US
Department of Defense (DoD) to participate in the LIFE Initiative and focus on prevention
programming in sub-Saharan Africa. Because of expertise gained from the DoD LIFE
Initiative, the US Navy was designated in 2001 as the Executive Agent and the Initiative
was renamed the DoD HIV/AIDS Prevention Program (DHAPP). Currently, DHAPP is
mandated by Directive 6485.02E (revised in December 2013) to support all DoD global
HIV prevention programs and is administered through the Naval Health Research Center in
San Diego, California.
Over the years, DHAPP has successfully engaged over 80 countries in an effort to combat
HIV/AIDS among their respective military services. DHAPP is the DoD implementing agency
collaborating with the US Department of State, the Health Resources and Services
Administration, Peace Corps, US Agency for International Development (USAID), and the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in the US President’s Emergency Plan
for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). DHAPP receives funding for its programs from two sources: a
congressional plus-up to the Defense Health Program (DHP) and funding transfers from
the Department of State for PEPFAR. Programs that are supported by DHAPP receive only
one form of the previously mentioned funding. Foreign Military Financing (FMF) was
previously used by DoD, however, FMF funding ceased in 2011 and is no longer available.
Working closely with DoD, US Unified Combatant Commanders, Joint United Nations
Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), university collaborators, and other nongovernmental
organizations (NGOs), DHAPP’s goal is to maximize program impact by focusing on the
drivers of the epidemic specific to the military, and to support the development of
interventions and programs that address these issues.