Emergencies and Disasters and HIV
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Emergency Preparedness: What Do People with HIV Need to Know?
All Americans should have a plan for what to do during a hurricane, wildfire, or other emergency. But for people with HIV, it’s especially important to be prepared.
Plan ahead. To stay healthy, people with HIV must take HIV medicine (called antiretroviral therapy or ART) exactly as prescribed and get and keep an undetectable viral load—a level of HIV in your blood so low that a standard lab test can’t detect it. A natural disaster or other emergency may make it harder for you to do this. To avoid interruptions in your HIV treatment, ask your health care provider if you can get a 30-day (or longer) emergency prescription refill of your HIV medicine. Some states permit coverage for advanced refills of prescription medicine during an emergency, but laws vary by state. Learn more about Emergency Prescription Laws in your state.
Make a list of medicines and gather other medical paperwork. Keep a list of your HIV medicines and any others you take, their dosage amounts, and frequency, and a summary of your HIV treatment history in case you have to see another provider temporarily. Make sure you have a copy of your insurance card and the phone numbers for your providers and pharmacies.
Communicate with your provider. Talk to your healthcare provider about what you should do if you run out of medicine due to an emergency. In addition, in the event of an outbreak of a disease (like the flu), ask your provider whether you need to take specific precautions because you have HIV. See information about COVID-19 below.
Follow safety guidelines. Be aware that some types of disasters may affect air and water quality—which can be even harder on people with HIV and others with weakened immune systems. If you have HIV, disruptions in the availability of food and clean water can increase your risk for opportunistic infections. If proper sanitation and hygiene are an issue, it’s important to follow proper food and water safety guidelines. See CDC’s information on keeping food and water safe after a disaster or emergency. Also follow local guidance about exercise and going outside on days with poor air quality. See CDC’s information on protecting yourself during wildfire season.
Wash your hands. Regular handwashing with soap and clean water is the best way to remove germs that can make you and others sick. If you don’t have soap and clean water, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol.
Stay up to date on your vaccines. Make sure your vaccines for infections and illnesses such as tetanus and seasonal flu are up to date. Know the date of your last tetanus shot in case of injury in an emergency. (Learn more about COVID-19 vaccines, below.)
Learn how you can get emergency prescription assistance. The Department of Health and Human Service’s Emergency Prescription Assistance Program may be activated after a disaster. It is a free service that helps people in a federally-identified disaster who do not have health insurance get the prescription drugs, vaccinations, medical supplies, and equipment that they need. Visit PHE.gov/EPAP for details.
COVID-19 and Emergency Preparedness
During emergencies, people with chronic health conditions can face special health challenges, particularly if local COVID-19 hospital admissions levels are high. Here are some actions you can take to stay healthy:
Get vaccinated for COVID-19. CDC recommends everyone—including people with HIV—stay up to date with COVID-19 vaccines for their age group. According to CDC, here’s what you need to know:
- CDC recommends the 2023-2024 updated COVID-19 vaccines: Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, or Novavax, to protect against serious illness from COVID-19.
- Everyone aged 5 years and older should get 1 dose of an updated COVID-19 vaccine to protect against serious illness from COVID-19.*
- Children aged 6 months–5 years may need multiple doses of COVID-19 vaccine to be up to date, including at least 1 dose of updated COVID-19 vaccine.
- People who are moderately or severely immunocompromised (have a weakened immune system) may get additional doses of updated COVID-19 vaccine. This includes people with advanced or untreated HIV.
- COVID-19 vaccine recommendations will be updated as needed.
* People aged 12 years and older who have not previously gotten any COVID-19 vaccine doses and choose to get Novavax should get 2 doses of updated Novavax vaccine to be up to date.
Learn more about CDC's vaccine recommendations.
If you have questions about getting COVID-19 vaccine and whether it is right for you, talk to your health care provider.
Visit vaccines.gov or call 1-800-232-0233 to find a COVID-19 vaccine near you.
Understand your COVID-19 risk, and the risks that might affect others so that you can make decisions to protect yourself and others.
Follow CDC’s recommended COVID-19 preventive actions.
Resources to Help You Plan Ahead
There are many resources to help you prepare for emergencies and disasters:
- CDC’s Emergency Preparedness and Response site has information on how to keep yourself and your loved ones safe.
- Ready.gov offers tips and tools to help you plan ahead for many different kinds of disasters and emergencies.
- The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s State Homeland Security and Emergency Services page provides links to homeland security and public safety websites in your state.
- The FDA’s Safe Drug Use after a Natural Disaster offers information on the use of medicines before and after natural disasters.
Help with Recovery
During and after a disaster, it is natural to experience different and strong emotions. Coping with these feelings and getting help when you need it will help you, your family, and your community recover from a disaster.
The Disaster Distress Helpline supports people who need crisis counseling after experiencing a traumatic event or disaster. Counselors are trained to offer immediate support to people who may be experiencing a range of symptoms. Call or text 1-800-985-5990. Or visit: disasterdistress.samhsa.gov.
CDC provides resources for Coping with a Disaster or Traumatic Event, along with Coping with Stress during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration also offers many resources to help Americans who are recovering from an emergency or disaster.
- Tips for Survivors: Coping with Grief After a Disaster or Traumatic Event offers information about grief, the grieving process, and resources to help with grief.
- Tips for Survivors: Coping with Anger After a Disaster or Other Traumatic Event discusses anger and offers tips for calming yourself.
- Tips for Survivors of a Disaster or Other Traumatic Event: Coping with Retraumitization discusses the signs and symptoms of retraumatization and how to manage it.