On Friday, Gilead Sciences, Ford Foundation, Elton John AIDS Foundation, ViiV Healthcare, and Johnson & Johnson – leading funders of the domestic HIV response – launched a first-of-its-kind collaborative, The Southern HIV Impact Fund to stop the persistent and worsening impact of the epidemic on the region.

The Fund is making an initial investment of $2.65 million in support of 37 organizations in nine states, including Georgia, and has already mobilized an additional $150,000 in emergency support for people living with HIV in hurricane-impacted areas of the region, including Texas and Florida.