April 18th marks National Transgender HIV Testing Day (NTHTD). We are celebrating NTHTD by uplifting the health, wellbeing and resilience of the trans community. Please read to the end for testing resources and places to learn more! 

The transgender community faces significant and often intersecting barriers to HIV prevention and treatment. Some of these factors include transphobic discrimination, racism, transmisogyny, HIV stigma, housing and transportation insecurity, and unmet needs for medical transition such as surgery or hormones. According to this CDC fact sheet, Black transgender women experienced new HIV diagnoses at a rate 5 times higher than white transgender women in 2018 and Hispanic/Latina transgender women experienced new HIV diagnoses at a rate 3 times higher than white transgender women.  

Despite these circumstances, the trans community has an abundant history of resilience. In the face of marginalization, trans people and their supporters have worked to meet each other's needs through mutual aid, harm reduction, advocacy and community support.  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) emphasizes the importance of routine HIV testing, status awareness and continued focus on HIV prevention and treatment efforts for the trans community. At CAP, Our House and Prism Health, creating a safe, comfortable environment is a top priority. Lindsey Sipos, Prism’s RN Gender Care Coordinator, shares that “what makes Prism special is that our clinic provides an affirming experience from the waiting room to the exam room to the back office.” 

If you or someone you know is a trans, nonbinary or gender-nonconforming person interested in celebrating NTHTD or accessing HIV testing, please check out these resources: 

• Join us for GAY SKATE NIGHT on April 18th from 7-9:30pm at Oaks Amusement Park! There will be snacks, roller skating and free HIV testing! 

• Learn more about HIV testing at CAP 

• Order a free HIV self-test kit online. Get results within 20 minutes—on your own time, in your own space. 

• Check out Vibrant—our new podcast! Episode 1 features a conversation about gender affirming care at Prism Health with Linsey Sipos. 

About Cascade AIDS Project

CAP is a non-profit organization that was founded in 1985 as a grassroots response to the AIDS crisis. As the oldest and largest community-based HIV services provider in Oregon and southwest Washington, we seek to support and empower all people with or affected by HIV, reduce stigma, and provide the LGBTQ+ community with compassionate healthcare. We do so by helping to ensure the health and well-being of our program participants each year through health, housing, and other social services. When the need for affordable, accessible, and culturally affirming primary care services was identified as a community need, we responded by opening Prism Health in 2017.  More information can be found at www.capnw.org.