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ViiV Healthcare Limited

ViiV

We are ViiV Healthcare: a specialist pharmaceutical company 100% dedicated to HIV medicines and research and focused on people living with HIV and AIDS.Born out of a partnership between GSK and Pfizer in 2009, with Shionogi joining in 2012, at ViiV Healthcare we are determined to help end the HIV epidemic.

Lobbying Activity

Meeting with Rasmus Nordqvist (Member of the European Parliament)

4 Jun 2025 · Roundtable on elemination of HIV

Meeting with Thomas Bajada (Member of the European Parliament)

18 Dec 2024 · Meeting on HIV/AIDS

Meeting with Vytenis Povilas Andriukaitis (Member of the European Parliament) and UNITE Parliamentarians Network for Global Health

5 Dec 2024 · EU health policy

Meeting with Nicolás González Casares (Member of the European Parliament) and GSK and RPP Group

18 Sept 2024 · Non-communicable diseases

Meeting with Krzysztof Śmiszek (Member of the European Parliament) and Acumen Public Affairs

18 Sept 2024 · Fight against HIV/AIDS

Meeting with András Tivadar Kulja (Member of the European Parliament) and GSK

18 Sept 2024 · Vaccination

Meeting with Marc Angel (Member of the European Parliament)

25 Oct 2023 · Global partnership eliminate HIV stigma and discrimination

Response to Mid-term review of the LGBTIQ Equality Strategy 2020-2025

18 Sept 2023

As the only pharmaceutical company entirely focusing on prevention and treatment of HIV & AIDS, we warmly welcome the opportunity to comment on the mid-term implementation of the Commission's inaugural LGBTIQ Equality Strategy 2020-2025. At ViiV Healthcare we aim to better understand the public health impact of the expanding global anti-rights and anti-gender movements by exploring potential options to ensure that the right to health is upheld for everyone, immaterial of sexual orientation and/or gender identity. Positive actions have already been taken under this Strategy.. The Commission's allocation of funding within the Horizon Europe 2023-2024 framework for healthcare services catering to vulnerable groups, alongside the EU4Health programme's investment in projects promoting integrated community healthcare is essential to make progress in mitigating health-related disparities. However, EU research included in LGBTIQ 2020-2025 strategy demonstrated profound health inequalities impacting the LGBTIQ community. From health policy design to training of healthcare professionals and funding for treatments or prevention methods, the needs of the LGBTIQ community are not sufficiently considered. These inadequacies underscore the pressing need for sustained support, coordinated efforts among Member States, and innovative solutions at both the EU and national levels to bridge the gap. It is essential to acknowledge the disproportionate impact of HIV/AIDS on the LGBTIQ community. As highlighted by UNAIDS, gay men and other men who have sex with men have 28 times greater risk of acquiring HIV. Moreover, persistent stigmatization and discriminatory practices lead to a heightened prevalence of mental health conditions among People Living with HIV (PLHIV). Unaddressed, these conditions not only undermine the overall health-related quality of life of PLHIV but also impact adherence to treatment and prevention and retention in care. Within the Strategy, three key pillars bear particular relevance to the battle against HIV. In this context, we urge the Commission to incorporate the following actions into the Strategy's implementation: 1. Combating Stigma and Discrimination in all forms: As recently highlighted by the ECDC (report attached), one in eight PLHIV are denied health services because of stigma and discrimination. Given the overlapping stigma that people may face for both their sexual identity and their HIV status, a holistic approach is necessary to improve the lives of LGBTIQ PLHIV. Hence, promotion of programmes are needed to improve holistic health-related quality of life for LGBTIQ PLHIV of all ages. These could be done through the EU4Health programme, Horizon Europe but also as part of the other EU initiatives, such as a potential renewal of the EU HIV Action Plan. 2. Ensure health equity for all members of the LGBTIQ community: The Commission should take proactive steps to foster a comprehensive dialogue to heighten awareness of the unique requirements of individuals who identify as trans or non-binary. These groups can fall through the cracks of outreach targeted specifically at men or women and for PLHIV, cause further delays in access to treatments as well as prevention methods. The meeting of the LGBTIQ Equality Subgroup on gender recognition was a positive step, however we recommend a further meeting to actively promote and advocate for full integration and inclusion within health policy initiatives. For example, the Commission could coordinate Member States in developing or sharing best practices in relation to guidelines for training of healthcare professionals. 3. Placing Civil Society and communities at the center: The Commission should continue and expand its financial support for campaigns initiated by communities, with a particular emphasis on ensuring the active involvement of PLHIV and members of all parts of the LGBTIQ community in the continuum of care and decision-making processes.
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Meeting with Kim Van Sparrentak (Member of the European Parliament)

19 Jul 2023 · Prevention of HIV/aids

Meeting with Frances Fitzgerald (Member of the European Parliament)

4 Jul 2023 · HIV Prevention

Meeting with Nicolás González Casares (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur)

29 Mar 2023 · VIH

Meeting with Marc Angel (Member of the European Parliament)

28 Mar 2023 · HIV

Meeting with Nicolás González Casares (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur)

17 Nov 2022 · VIH

Meeting with Terry Reintke (Member of the European Parliament)

16 Sept 2022 · HIV Prevention

Response to Proposal for a Council Recommendation on long-term care

29 Mar 2022

ViiV Healthcare is the only pharmaceutical company entirely focusing on treatment of HIV & AIDS. We welcome the opportunity to comment on the Commission’s call for evidence and support the initiative to issue a proposal for a Council Recommendation on long-term care (LTC) as it is a growing issue for People Living with HIV (PLHIV). Thanks to significant advances in treatment and care, HIV has now become a manageable long-term condition. However, as PLHIV live longer lives, new challenges have emerged. PLHIV are more likely to develop additional health conditions than the rest of the population, including cancer, kidney failure, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and mental health conditions. This requires a long-term and integrated approach to care to ensure coordination in the management of a wide array of comorbidities. Poor long-term adherence is another key challenge to effective long-term HIV care. This can have severe implications both from a clinical perspective and from a public health perspective. Poor adherence can lead to a detectable or unsuppressed viral load, development of treatment resistance as well as the risk of transmission, jeopardizing the achievement of the HIV/AIDS elimination goals. In addition, HIV-related stigma and discrimination, especially in healthcare settings, still constitutes a major barrier to effective HIV care, with roughly one in every eight PLHIV being denied access to health services due to their HIV status 1. This is often driven by existing discrimination based on social-economic status, ethnicity, gender and sexual identity among other factors. Protecting the confidentiality of people’s HIV status is a central part of creating safe and supportive healthcare environments along with the dissemination of the message that a PLHIV whose viral load is undetectable cannot sexually transmit the virus (Undetectable = Untransmissible). This reality requires a holistic and multidisciplinary approach to HIV care. The European Care Strategy and its foreseen reform of LTC is an excellent opportunity to support the adoption of integrated care models based on multidisciplinary and cross-sectoral cooperation between different healthcare practitioners and other actors involved in various aspects of the LTC pathway. We recommend that the upcoming Strategy: 1. Supports the adoption of an integrated model of LTC for people living with chronic conditions – such as HIV – to address the different physical, psychological and social aspects of the disease in a holistic way. The upcoming Strategy should lay the foundations of a new LTC framework based on the following pillars: • A life-course and personalized approach to disease management, including the prevention and treatment of comorbidities, through the creation of a one-point-of-care system. • The integration of mental health services and psychological support in clinical practice to enhance the long-term well-being and health-related quality of life of people in LTC. • Synergies between clinical care and community services, including peer to peer support, to adequately address the multi-faceted needs of people living with long-term conditions. This could include individualized support on lifestyle factors – including isolation – as well as on health-related aspects of employment issues (e.g., pension schemes), housing, insurance and financial planning. 2. Tackle disease-related stigma and discrimination in healthcare settings and beyond through tailored education programs. As a fundamental right of people in care, the non-discrimination principle should be embedded in the policy framework to guarantee the development of sustainable and high-quality LTC systems. Health and community workers who are well trained and appropriately skilled in human rights and ethics, represent important champions to addressing stigma and discrimination. 1 https://www.beintheknow.org/understanding-hiv-epidemic/context/stigma-and-hiv
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