U = U

U=U stands for Undetectable = Untransmittable. It means that if someone living with HIV is on medication and has an undetectable viral load, they cannot pass on the virus to a partner.

U=U transforms what it means to live with HIV.

People living with HIV who have durably suppressed their viral load to an undetectable viral load for at least six months, and take antiviral therapy (ART) medications as prescribed, do not transmit HIV to sex partners.

The essence of this revolutionary fact is oftentimes captured by the slogan, “U=U” which stands for “undetectable equals untransmittable.”

The science behind U=U spans many years and clinical trials involving thousands of people living with HIV. With tens of thousands of instances of condomless sex documented between partners in serodiscordant (different status) couples, zero HIV transmissions have occurred when the partner living with HIV was undetectable. The U=U message is backed by large health organizations including the National Institutes of Health and the Centers for Disease Control.

The U=U Campaign, started by Prevention Access Campaign, promotes and advocates for the undetectable equals untransmittable message in order to decrease HIV stigma and combat the message that people living with HIV pose a “risk.”

Tez Anderson is a U=U Ambassador

A person living with HIV who is on treatment and has an undetectable viral load cannot transmit HIV through sex. “From a practical standpoint, the risk is zero, so don’t worry about it.”

-Anthony Fauci M.D., Director of NIAID for the NIH