HHS Renames AIDS.gov to HIV.gov

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has officially changed the name of AIDS.gov, the federal government’s source for information about HIV, to HIV.gov. The name change coincides with the 36th anniversary of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s first report of the initial cases of what would become known as AIDS, and “reflects major scientific advances that have transformed an almost universally fatal disease to a condition that, if diagnosed and treated early and continuously, can be controlled and prevented from progressing to AIDS.”

“Much progress has been made in HIV/AIDS research since the disease was first recognized in 1981. Today, lifesaving antiretroviral therapies allow those living with HIV to enjoy longer, healthier lives — an outcome that once seemed unattainable,” said Anthony S. Fauci, MD, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. “The website AIDS.gov has been a valuable resource for those seeking information about HIV/AIDS, and its name change to HIV.gov appropriately reflects our evolution in transforming the pandemic, even as work remains to bring about an end to HIV.”

More than eight million people used the AIDS.gov website and its social media channels to find information about HIV or to find HIV-related programs and services in 2016, including HIV testing, medical care and treatment. The name change also embraces the way most people now search online for information about the disease. “HIV” is a much more common Internet search term than “AIDS.”