California

Groups & Resources 

The California Department of Public Health works collaboratively with state and federal agencies, local health jurisdictions, universities, and community-based organizations to ensure that efforts to combat the HIV/AIDS epidemic are targeted and effective. 

Equality California brings the voices of LGBTQ+ people and allies to institutions of power in California and across the United States, striving to create a world that is healthy, just, and fully equal for all LGBTQ+ people. We advance civil rights and social justice by inspiring, advocating, and mobilizing through an inclusive movement that works tirelessly on behalf of those we serve. 

Seeking support is the most important step that people with HIV can take for their physical and mental health. When you connect yourself to care — whether it’s for medical services, financial assistance or just someone to talk to — you take control of your health. Check out this tool by The Body to find California AIDS Services Organizations.

Fact Sheets

California: HIV Criminalization in California: What We Know is an overview of the HIV Criminalization Laws in California (2017).

California: SB 239 Frequently Asked Questions answers 10 questions about why California’s HIV criminalization laws need to be modernized.

Myths and Facts about Criminal Prosecutions of People Living with HIV addresses a number of misconceptions that many people have about the frequency and nature of the HIV-based criminal prosecutions that take place in the United States. When considering changing the law, it is important to clear up these misconceptions and examine the actual facts regarding such prosecutions.

California: SB 239 Fact Sheet Modernizing California HIV Criminalization Laws summarizes SB239 which ends HIV exceptionalism by updating the law with the current scientific understanding of HIV, addressing exposure to HIV in the same manner as exposure to other serious communicable diseases, and eliminating extra punishment for people living with HIV who engage in consensual sexual activity.