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AIDS.gov Mission and Team

Objectives

  1. Expand visibility of timely and relevant Federal HIV policies, programs, and resources to the American public.
  2. Increase use of new media tools by government, minority, and other community partners to extend the reach of HIV programs to communities at greatest risk.
  3. Increase knowledge about HIV and access to HIV services for people most at-risk for, or living with, HIV.
  4. Support the goals and objectives of the Secretary's Minority AIDS Initiative Fund (SMAIF)

AIDS.gov receives planning guidance from a cross agency planning group and uses a Communications Plan (701 KB) to guide AIDS.gov activities. Updated Communications Plan coming soon!

Help Share this Important Information

Unless otherwise noted, material presented on the AIDS.gov Web site is considered Federal government information and is in the public domain. That means this information may be freely copied and distributed. We request that you use appropriate attribution to AIDS.gov.

Many checklists and other materials are available in PDF format for ease of duplication. Note that if material is adapted or modified, all AIDS.gov citations and logos must be removed. If copyrighted content, documents, images, or other materials appear on AIDS.gov, it will be noted, and the copyright holder must be consulted before that material may be reproduced.

Web site managers are encouraged to link to AIDS.gov. Please identify the site as providing one-stop access to U.S. Government HIV/AIDS information. The AIDS.gov logo may be used in conjunction with your link. The logo is comprised of the following file: AIDS_gov_thumbnail.gif (9.79 KB). For example, the following should be placed on a site to link to AIDS.gov:

AIDS.gov Thumbnail image
Visit AIDS.gov: Access to U.S. Government HIV/AIDS information.
 

Sample Code:

<a href="http://www.aids.gov"><img alt="AIDS.gov: Access to U.S. Government HIV / AIDS information" src="https://aids.gov/images/aids_gov_thumbnail.gif" title="AIDS.gov Thumbnail image" /><br /></a>Visit <a href="http://www.aids.gov">AIDS.gov: Access to U.S. Government HIV/AIDS information.</a>

Governance

HHS collaborates with departments and agencies across the Federal government to provide HIV/AIDS related information to users. We develop implement and evaluate our activities by creating work plans for major events like World AIDS Day or conferences like the U.S. Conference on AIDS (Social Media Lab). Content for this Web site is provided by:

  • The White House
    • Office of National AIDS Policy
    • Office of National Drug Control Policy
    • The United States President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR)
  • U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)
  • U.S. Department of Health and Human Services*
    • Office of the Secretary
      • President’s Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS (PACHA)
    • Administration on Aging
    • Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)
    • Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships (CFBNP)
    • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
    • Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (C MS)
    • Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
    • Health Resources and Service Administration (HRSA)
    • Indian Health Service (IHS)
    • National Institutes of Health (NIH)
      • National Cancer Institute (NCI)
      • National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID)
      • National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)
      • National Library of Medicine (NLM)
      • Office of AIDS Research
    • Office of Civil Rights
    • Office of Global Health Affairs
    • Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health
      • Office of Adolescent Health (OAH)
      • Office of Disease Prevention and Heath Promotion (ODPHP)
      • Office of HIV/AIDS and Infectious Disease Policy (OHAIDP)
      • Office of Minority Health (OMH)
      • Office of Population Affairs (OPA)
      • Office of the Surgeon General (OSG)
      • Office on Women’s Health (OWH)
    • Office of the Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs
      • Web Communication Division
    • Substance Abuse and Medical Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)
  • U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)
  • U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ)
    • Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP)
  • U.S. Department of Labor (DOL)
  • U.S. Department of State (State)
    • Office of the Global AIDS Coordinator
  • U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)
  • U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs (VA)
  • Social Security Administration (SSA)

*The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is the United States Government’s principal agency for protecting the health of all Americans. HHS is the managing sponsor of AIDS.gov and the program is funded by the Secretary's Minority AIDS Initiative Fund (SMAIF). 

AIDS.gov Team

Miguel GomezMiguel Gomez
Director, AIDS.gov, and Senior Communications Advisor, Office of HIV/AIDS and Infectious Disease Policy, HHS

Ann Marie RakovicAnn Marie Rakovic
Managing Director

Pavni GuahroyPavni Guharoy
Communications Director

Cathy ThomasCathy Thomas
Technical Director & Federal Liaison

Aisha MooreAisha Moore
Communications Coordinator

Michelle Samplin-SalgadoMichelle Samplin-Salgado
Digital Director

Jeremiah VanderlanJeremiah Vanderlan
Technical Deputy

Paige BakerPaige Baker
Executive Editor

Chris DeLooseChris DeLoose
Developer

Carson MonroeCarson Monroe
Developer

David VaughanDavid Vaughan
Data Analyst

Deb LeBelDeb LeBel
Partnership Director

Tim BadaczewskiTim Badaczewski
Developer

Jeff HeinrichsJeff Heinrichs
Developer

Billy WeinheimerBilly Weinheimer
Designer

Greg GruseGreg Gruse
Mobile Architect

National HIV/AIDS Strategy

AIDS.gov communicates about and works toward achieving the President's National HIV/AIDS Strategy goals:

  1. Reduce new HIV infections
  2. Increase access to care and improve health outcomes for people living with HIV
  3. Reduce HIV-related health disparities

Federal HIV/AIDS Web Council

AIDS.gov both manages and receives guidance from the Federal HIV/AIDS Web Council, which is composed of representatives from many of the Departments and agencies listed above. The Council brings together Web, content, and communications leads from Federal agencies with HIV/AIDS portfolios. Council members plan and implement Federal new media efforts around HIV/AIDS. The Council also promotes coordination and collaboration to improve delivery of HIV/AIDS prevention, testing, and treatment messages and services via new media.

The Federal HIV/AIDS Web Council is coordinated by Miguel Gomez, the Director of AIDS.gov (miguel.gomez@hhs.gov; Mary E. Switzer Memorial Building 330 C St SW, Washington, DC 20024; (202) 795-7609). The group meets for thirty minutes to an hour, via conference call, on every second Wednesday of each month and has an annual in-person meeting.

If you have questions about the Federal HIV/AIDS Web Council, please send them to contact@aids.gov.

Conferences

AIDS.gov uses these criteria (PDF 18 KB) to maintain a page to feature conferences of interest to the HIV and viral hepatitis community.

Webinars

AIDS.gov uses these criteria (PDF 168 KB) to maintain a page to feature webinars of interest to the HIV and viral hepatitis community.

Health Observances

AIDS.gov does not create or sponsor any HIV/AIDS or Viral Hepatitis Awareness Days. We offer information on a number of events and observances that promote awareness about HIV and viral hepatitis.

We also work with our colleagues across the U.S. government to cross-promote Federal activities for National HIV Testing Day (June 27) and World AIDS Day (December 1). We encourage everyone involved in health observances to assess what your stakeholders want and to evaluate your efforts to maximize reach and impact.

Information or links appearing on this page are provided as a service to our visitors and do not represent endorsement by AIDS.gov or the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

AIDS.gov History

2016

  • Implemented forward secrecy and HSTS (HTTP Strict Transport Security) across all AIDS.gov domains
  • Earned A+ rating via SSL Labs Server Test

2015

  • Reached more than 300,000 followers on Twitter
  • Launched Positive Spin Digital Storytelling Initiative and Facilitator's Guide
  • Led communications support for release of NHAS updated to 2020

2014

  • Began working to develop a digital strategy for HHS
  • Launched our new Virtual Office Hours
  • Served as the USG communications vehicle at AIDS 2014 in Melbourne, Australia
  • Migrated all AIDS.gov domains to HTTPS by default.
  • Began using Instagram
  • Launched Black Voices Blog Series

2013

  • Began working to support the Affordable Care Act
  • Developed national technical assistance new media tools for the White House’s HIV Care Continuum Initiative

2012

  • Established the national New Media Declaration at AIDS 2012
  • Worked with the White House and OMB to develop the Federal Digital Government Strategy
  • Redesigned the AIDS.gov site using Responsive Design
  • Began working with the GSA to educate Federal staff on responding to changes in the ways consumers access information on public health programs

2011

  • Launched Facing AIDS, first responsive website
  • Expanded our work to cover viral hepatitis
  • Began broadcasting video updates from the annual Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI)

2010

  • Launched the cross-agency HIV Testing Sites & Care Services Locator
  • Began broadcasting video updates from the biennial International AIDS Conference on behalf of the U.S. Government (USG)
  • Led communications support for the White House’s release of the National HIV/AIDS Strategy (NHAS)
  • Launched the Federal webpages for the Strategy
  • Designated as the NHAS vehicle for transparency by the White House
  • Began working with leaders in the community of black men who have sex with men (BMSM) to use new media to address rising HIV incidence rates

2009

  • Inaugurated the Federal HIV/AIDS Web Council to bring together Web, content, and communications leads from Federal agencies to promote new media planning, coordination, and cross-agency collaboration to increase the reach and effectiveness of HIV-related messages and services
  • Offered our first social media lab at the CDC’s National HIV Prevention Conference

2008

  • Launched the AIDS.gov blog to provide information on using new media to extend the reach of Federal HIV/AIDS messaging—with a particular emphasis on meeting the information needs of communities of color
  • Began using Twitter
  • Held first TA session on new media tools for national HIV organization partners

2007

  • Developed the USG’s first cross-agency podcast workgroup
  • Began using Facebook to highlight Federal resources for those reaching and serving communities of color
  • Held first technical assistance (TA) session on new media tools for senior Federal leadership

2006

  • In partnership with the White House, held the first meetings of the AIDS.gov Planning Workgroup to plan the launch of AIDS.gov—bringing together Federal HIV, technology, and communications leadership for the first time
  • Launched the program at an historic AIDS.gov-sponsored World AIDS Day gathering of African American and other Southern minority community leaders in Memphis, TN

2005

  • Secured permission from the White House to launch AIDS.gov