Coronavirus: Elton John launches $1 million fund to help protect people with HIV during pandemic

'We will not leave anyone behind', says singer

Elton John has launched a new $1 million (£815,000) fund to help protect those who have HIV during the coronavirus pandemic.

On Saturday, the singer shared a video on his social media accounts to announce the launch of the “Covid-19 Emergency Fund”, which has been made available by his non-profit organisation the Elton John Aids Foundation.

In the clip, John said the charity hopes to help provide people in marginalised communities gain access to towards HIV medicines, testing and preventive treatment amid the outbreak.

“For almost 30 years my foundation has prioritised the most vulnerable people to HIV, to end the AIDS epidemic and we’re committed to this during the Covid-19 crisis too,” John explained.

“Distributing medicines, testing and preventive treatment is not as simple as it was a few weeks ago, so our new Covid-19 emergency fund will help frontline partners to prepare for and respond to the pandemic and its effects on HIV prevention and care for the most marginalised communities.”

He continued: “We must keep up momentum or else the results could be disastrous for people living with HIV and other infectious diseases.

“We are with you, we are thinking of you, we will not leave anyone behind.”

The singer has thrown himself into the coronavirus relief effort, last week taking part in a video thanking NHS frontline workers for their hard work alongside a host of other celebrities including Paul McCartney, Stormzy, Kylie Minogue and Phoebe Waller-Bridge.

“You are our heros and we salute each and every one of you. Thank you,” John said while holding a placard that reads #ThankYouNHS and #OurNHSPeople.

He also recently hosted a star-studded charity concert from his LA home called the iHeart Living Room Concert for America , which brought together some of the biggest names in music, such as Billie Eilish, Alicia Keys, Lizzo and Mariah Carey.

All proceeds were given to two US charities working towards the coronavirus relief effort, Feeding America and First Responders Children's Foundation.