Northwestern Medicine and Vivent Health opening HIV clinic in Chicago
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Rendering of Vivent Health/TPAN's clinic expected to open this fall. Photo: Courtesy of Vivent Health/TPAN
Northwestern Medicine is teaming up with Vivent Health and Test Positive Aware Network (TPAN) to open a new clinic in Edgewater this fall.
Why it matters: Vivent Health/TPAN care for people living with or affected by HIV by offering prevention services, treatment, mental health care, legal services and a food pantry, regardless of clients' ability to pay.
- The new health center is an important step in Illinois' Getting to Zero (GTZ) campaign, which has a goal of reporting fewer than 100 new cases of HIV annually by 2030.
By the numbers: As of 2022, an estimated 37,300 people live with HIV and AIDS in Illinois, 21,298 of whom lived in Chicago, according to GTZ data.
- 80% identified as male and 44% are Black, according to statewide data.
- More than 1,300 people received an HIV diagnosis in 2022, and cisgender gay and bisexual men are the most affected.
- The 2025 state budget allocated $5.5 million to GTZ.
Zoom in: The new clinic will be located at 5537 N. Broadway after a $5 million renovation by Vivent Health to add medical services, and Northwestern will provide an infectious disease specialist.
Flashback: Vivent Health, formerly AIDS Resource Center of Wisconsin, started in the 1980s as HIV and AIDS were emerging as an epidemic mostly affecting gay men.
- It changed its name to Vivent Health in 2019 and merged last year with TPAN.
- HIV-positive activist Chris Clason founded TPAN in 1987 after he was denied care.
What's they're saying: "The model is very specific," Vivent Health CEO Brandon Hill tells Axios. "You can't even get to your medical care if you don't have transportation, if you don't have housing. And instead of … "Hey, here's a number to call for some housing," it's really all integrated in one place to make it a little more seamless for the patient."
Editor's note: This story has been corrected to say the new clinic will be on Broadway, not at TPAN's current location at Lawrence and Sheridan.