May 2020 Health Observances at a Glance

During May, several national health observances recognize – and call us to respond to – the breadth of the impact of HIV and viral hepatitis in our nation.

In 2020, these May observances occur in the context of COVID-19. We acknowledge the public health and HIV communities for their continuing efforts to draw attention to HIV and other health issues. We also appreciate their work to respond to COVID-19 concerns for those living with/at risk for HIV and their efforts to encourage COVID-19 prevention [PDF, 340KB].

This blog outlines where to find communication resources for each observance.

For the Month

May is Hepatitis Awareness Month in the United States. Blog readers can look to HHS and CDC for graphics, reusable content, and more throughout the month. The hashtag is #HepAware2020. If you are not already following @HHS_ViralHep, now is a good time to start.

For the Week

May 10-16 is National Women’s Health Week. The HHS Office on Women’s Health resource pages offer graphics, sample messages, the logo, and more for this year’s observance. The hashtag #NWHW will help you find and join the conversation.

Mark the Days

May 18 is HIV Vaccine Awareness Day. We encourage you to learn from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases about HIV vaccine development and to visit the HIV.gov Basics section for information on potential HIV-prevention options, including vaccines. The hashtag to follow and use is #HVAD.

May 19 is Hepatitis Testing Day. The hashtag is also #HepAware2020. CDC’s resource page and their @cdchep handle provide reusable content. You can also follow the @HHS_ViralHep handle on Twitter, the HIV.gov blog, and the HHS viral hepatitis blog.

May 19 is National Asian & Pacific Islander HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. To join the conversation about this observance, the suggested hashtag is #APIMay19.

For more information about these observances, we invite you to subscribe to the HIV.gov blog.