Toward a legal framework that promotes and protects sex workers' health and human rights

Complex combinations of law, policy, and enforcement practices determine sex workers vulnerability to HIV and rights abuses. We identify "lack of recognition as a person before the law" as an important but undocumented barrier to accessing services and conclude that multi-faceted, setting-specific reform is needed-rather than a singular focus on decriminalization-if the health and human rights of sex workers are to be realized.