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HOPWA is a U.S. Department of HUD administered grant program for state and local governments to develop a range of housing assistance and support services for low-income persons living with HIV/AIDS and their families. The Program was authorized in 1992 under Title 24, Code of Federal Regulations Section 574, AIDS Housing Opportunity Act.

• Eligible activities primarily include rental, mortgage and utility assistance. Other eligible activities include acquisition, new construction and supportive services such as medical assistance and counseling.
• Some people living with HIV/AIDS who are successfully being treated with Highly Active Anti-Retroviral (HAART) are experiencing significant improvements. However, some individuals with access to these medications are experiencing failure, and not all people living with HIV/AIDS who might be helped by existing HIV treatments necessarily have access to them.
• Studies show persisting disparities in access to these medications, particularly among women, people of color, and injection drug users. An additional study released in 2001 estimates that nearly all of the 750,000 people living with HIV (during this time) in the United States would have met the criteria for being offered HAART, but that only 200,000 were using the drug.

• Two (2) non-profit agencies known as consortiums work closely with area partners to provide services to clients throughout the Service area. AID Upstate, Inc. provides services to those residing in Anderson, Greenville and Pickens counties while Piedmont Care Inc. provides services to those residing in Cherokee, Spartanburg, and Union counties. Short-term rental, mortgage and utility assistance have been assessed as priority needs through previous assessments.
• Many individual families with low-incomes are forced to make critical choices when their income is not sufficient to meet their basic living needs. It may mean fewer meals, no health care, loss of utilities, overcrowded housing or eviction. For people living with HIV/AIDS who have low incomes, these choices can have a serious effect on their status.
• Unfortunately, the income gap between the poorest and richest families in the nation has reached a historic peak. In 45 states, the income of the richest 20% of households has increased at a faster rate than the 20% with the lowest incomes.
• Supplemental Security Income (SSI), which many individuals with HIV/AIDS depend on, paid a maximum of $552 per month to a single person under 65 living alone in 2003. This is equivalent to $6,624 per year, or 17% of median income for an individual in the Upstate area, well below the rate of poverty.
• The prevalence of HIV/AIDS among residents of the Southeast, African-American/Blacks, Hispanics/Latinos, women, young adults, persons exposed to HIV through heterosexual contact, and persons exiting the criminal justice system has increased disproportionately.