Gilead Sciences is pausing to reflect on its $100 million commitment to combat the HIV/AIDS crisis in the southern United States, partnering with a historically Black academic health science center to shed light on the impact of this substantial funding.
Gilead, headquartered in California, announced its decade-long, $100 million initiative called COMPASS to address the HIV epidemic in the southern US back in 2017. This initiative was designed to bolster organizations dedicated to tackling the epidemic. Gilead entrusted coordinating centers to identify local entities that could benefit from additional financial support.
At the halfway point of this endeavor, Gilead marked the initiative’s five-year milestone with an event in Nashville, Tennessee, and offered its support to a special edition of the Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved from Meharry Medical College. Established as one of the oldest and most significant historically Black academic health science centers in the country, Meharry played a pivotal role in this collaborative effort.
This special edition delves into the tangible impact of COMPASS, showcasing activities that Gilead has sponsored. One article, titled “Collective Remembrance as Community Mobilization Among Black gay, Bisexual, and Queer Men,” highlights the role of collective memory in mobilizing marginalized communities. Additionally, the edition includes research papers that quantify the effects of the funding.
One such paper, “Evaluating the COMPASS Initiative,” critically examines the program’s three primary objectives. Notably, it reveals that coordinating centers distributed $14.5 million across 16 states from 2018 to 2022. Impressively, partners leveraged their engagement with COMPASS to secure an additional $21.4 million from various sources, including government agencies and private foundations.
Moreover, the paper underscores the efforts to enhance local leadership and reshape public perceptions across the Southern region. Over 3,000 individuals received training, coaching, or technical assistance, while COMPASS and its collaborators reached an astounding 34 million individuals through impactful social media outreach.
Gilead’s commemoration of COMPASS’s five-year journey coincided with the release of financial results, which showcased an 11% surge in sales of its HIV products to $8.8 billion in the first half of the year. This increase was driven by favorable pricing dynamics and heightened demand. It’s worth noting that Gilead has faced criticism for perceived profiteering within the realm of HIV.
As Gilead takes stock of its halfway point in the ambitious COMPASS Initiative, its collaboration with Meharry Medical College and the enlightening research published underline the vital steps taken towards addressing the HIV/AIDS epidemic, particularly in underserved communities in the southern United States. This commitment aligns with the company’s robust financial performance, though it remains in the public eye due to ongoing conversations about pricing and accessibility within the realm of HIV healthcare.
