214
The number of people in Ohio who have been charged with at least one of the unjust laws.
Are you an Ohio resident living with HIV and want to make a difference?
Are you an Ohio resident living with HIV and want to make a difference?
Join us in our fight for justice, fairness, and public health. Together, we can rewrite the narrative and create a healthier, more inclusive Ohio.
At a vibrant and heartfelt ceremony, OHMM proudly accepted the 2025 Caracole Living Award surrounded by community leaders, allies, and advocates. The event was filled with joy, remembrance, and renewed commitment to justice. Powerful moments were captured as OHMM’s Steering Committee, led by newly appointed President Naimah O’Neal, accepted the honor on behalf of the movement. O’Neal gave an emotional dedication of the award to the late Bryan C. Jones, whose legacy lives on in every photo, every embrace, and every promise to keep fighting until HIV is no longer criminalized and stigma no longer tolerated.
In Ohio, a person living with HIV can go to prison for 8 years for not disclosing their status.
Ohio’s laws punish behavior that poses no or negligible risk of HIV transmission. The laws are unscientific.
There is no evidence that HIV criminal laws promote public health by increasing disclosure, HIV testing, or safer sex.
Ohio’s HIV laws are opposed by public health and criminal justice experts, such as the ACLU of Ohio.
The impact of Ohio’s unjust HIV Laws reach far beyond their original intention. They have become UNSCIENTIFIC as the Law has failed to catch up with the science. They are UNPRODUCTIVE because they are UNSUPPORTED by science. This has led to UNJUST felony convictions that punish not only the perceived perpetrator, but the community at large.
The good news is we know what needs to be done. Since the HIV pandemic of the ’80s, advances in technology and medicine have changed the nature of HIV transmission and treatment. Laws have not. In fact, the laws do nothing but promote stigma and discourage testing.
This much is clear: we cannot afford to fail in our mission to modernize Ohio’s HIV Laws.
Now including testimonies from people living with HIV and how the laws have affected them, the new report shows how Ohio’s Outdated Laws Continue to Criminalize Individuals Living with HIV
The Equality Ohio Education Fund and the Ohio Health Modernization Movement have unveiled a comprehensive report on the Enforcement of HIV Criminalization in Ohio. Authored by Kate Mozynski, Esq., and Delaney Barr, Esq., this report presents the first-ever statewide analysis, covering data from all 88 counties from 2014 to 2020.
From 2014 to 2020, there were at least 214 confirmed HIV-related prosecutions in Ohio, of which over half (120 cases) came from the state’s “harassment with a bodily substance” law and about a third (77 cases) came under the Ohio’s felonious assault law. The remainder (17 cases) were related to sex work.
The enforcement of Ohio’s HIV criminal statutes is geographically concentrated with at least 26 percent (56 cases) of prosecutions occurring in Cuyahoga County (Cleveland). The other most-represented counties include Hamilton County (Cincinnati), with at least 26 cases and Lucas County (Toledo) with at least 16 cases.
Ohio’s HIV criminalization laws disproportionately impact Black communities, with at least 36 percent of defendants identifying as Black. Statewide, 29 percent of all defendants (62 people) were Black men.
In Cuyahoga County, 68 percent of HIV related cases impacted Black Ohioans.
Led by the Ohio Health Modernization Movement,
a coalition of advocacy groups and community leaders,
including prominent healthcare professionals and advocates,
convened at the Ohio Statehouse to support the
passage of House Bill 498 (HB498) and House Bill 513 (HB513).
The number of people in Ohio who have been charged with at least one of the unjust laws.
The number counties that have used one of the unjust laws to prosecute someone
The number of laws in Ohio impacting people living with HIV
Please take a moment to view our video, which features inspiring individuals who are currently living with HIV. Through this video, we aim to create a greater understanding of our work and how it makes a positive impact in Ohio. We invite you to join us in supporting our cause and helping us spread awareness about HIV and its effects across the state.