IAS: Future Universal Access to HIV Care Under Threat Despite a tenfold increase in access to HIV prevention, treatment and care from 2003 to 2009, future prospects for universal access look gloomy, according to an International AIDS Society (IAS) statement.
Swiss Catholic Parishes Give Condoms to Teens Roman Catholic parishes in the Swiss city of Lucerne have been giving out condoms to young people as part of an HIV/AIDS awareness campaign, USA Today reports.
Willow and Jaden Smith Support Keep a Child Alive Singer Willow and her Karate Kid brother Jaden Smith are the latest celebrities to model T-shirts for the new Keep a Child Alive (KCA) fund-raising campaign titled “Buy Life.”
Canadian Judge Overturns Convictions of HIV-Positive Man An HIV-positive man who didn’t disclose his status before sexual relations with his partners had four of his six sexual assault convictions overturned by the Manitoba Court of Appeals in Canada, Xtra! reports.
Growth in Infectious Disease Drugs at Bristol-Myers Squibb Bristol-Meyers Squibb (BMS) had an 8 percent increase in worldwide sales of virology drugs, such as the HIV drug Reyataz and the hepatitis B drug Baraclude, in the third quarter of 2010, The Wall Street Journal reports.
October 26, 2010
White House Invites HIV-Positive Man Evicted From Assisted Living Facility Robert Franke—a retired university provost and minister who was evicted from an assisted living facility in Little Rock, Arkansas, after his HIV-positive status was revealed—has been invited to the White House, according to a Lambda Legal statement.
NYC Survey of Teens Reveals Risky Sexual Behavior
A survey of more than 17,000 New York City high school students from 2005 to 2007 reveals many teens are participating in risky sexual behavior, NY1 reports.
Adherence to HIV Meds Decreasing in Africa An alarming trend: Up to 40 percent of Africans with HIV who start treatment discontinue it within one to three years, which can lead to viral strains resistant to less-expensive first-line medications, The New York Times reports.
October 25, 2010
World Cup Did Not Increase Sex Work in South Africa A new study by a sex worker group in South Africa shows that sex work did not increase during the 2010 World Cup, PlusNews reports. The results are contrary to expectations of some HIV/AIDS advocates, who anticipated a rise in sex work that would fuel HIV transmission rates.
Finger-Prick HIV Tests Promoted to Gay Men in London A new campaign encourages gay men in London to screen for HIV using a finger-prick blood test, PinkPaper.com reports. The finger-prick test is painless, provides results in 20 minutes and is considered more than 99 percent accurate.
Knife Attack Responsible for HIV Transmission Case A rare HIV transmission case: A man in Taiwan contracted HIV as a result of blood-to-blood contact in a fight with a knife-wielding mugger, aidsmap.com reports.
UCLA Gets $4M NIH Grant to Study HIV in Jails Researchers at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) have received a $4.6 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to investigate ways to get HIV-positive men released from Los Angeles County jails into medical care and treatment, according to a UCLA statement.
October 21, 2010
JetBlue Flight Attendant Pleads Guilty Steven Slater, the former JetBlue flight attendant, plead guilty to a felony charge of second-degree attempted criminal mischief and a misdemeanor charge of fourth-degree attempted criminal mischief.
First Cuban MSM HIV Prevention Initiative Turns 10 An HIV prevention initiative in Cuba for men who have sex with men (MSM) that launched 10 years ago is now applied in 14 provinces in the country through a total of 1,700 health workers providing community outreach, IPS reports.
Regulating Condoms in the Porn Industry The great condom debate lives on: Requiring the adult film industry to use condoms may not stem the spread of HIV among actors, according to an article in The Atlantic.
Chicago Begins Inmate HIV Program The University of Illinois at Chicago has won a $7 million federal grant to research and target HIV infection in correctional facilities, according to the Chicago Sun Times.
Sotomayor Says Supreme Court Should Have Heard HIV Appeal Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor said the court should have listened to the appeal of a Louisiana inmate who said prison officials subjected him to cruel and unusual punishment after he refused to take HIV medications, reports the Courthouse News Service.
October 18, 2010
Obama Heckled About AIDS Funding AIDS activists demanding more HIV/AIDS funding heckled President Barack Obama during his speech at a rally for Massachusetts gubernatorial candidate Deval Patrick, The Associated Press reports.
CDC: Risk of HIV Diagnosis Higher for Blacks, Latinos
In the United States, 1 in 22 blacks and 1 in 52 Latinos will be diagnosed with HIV in their lifetimes compared with 1 in 170 whites, according to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report released on National Latino AIDS Awareness Day, October 15.
Los Angeles AIDS Walk Raises Nearly $3 Million The 26 Annual AIDS Walk held Sunday, October 17, in West Hollywood, California, raised nearly $3 million for the treatment and care of those living with HIV/AIDS, reports ABC 7 news.
October 15, 2010
Oct. 15 Is National Latino AIDS Awareness Day National Latino AIDS Awareness Day (NLAAD) is Friday, October 15, the last day of Hispanic Heritage Month. The theme of NLAAD 2010 is “Save a Life, It May Be Your Own. Get Tested for HIV.”
SAMHSA Grants $40M for Substance Abuse and HIV Prevention
The Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), a branch of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is awarding $40.4 million in grants to expand HIV prevention and substance abuse services, according to a SAMHSA statement.
Report Finds Subpar Health Care, High HIV Rates for Transgender People Transgender and gender-nonconforming people face discrimination by health care providers, high rates of HIV and little to no access to care, according to a report released by the National Center for Transgender Equality and the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force.
Virginia ADAP Program Struggles With Lack of Funding Virginia’s AIDS Drug Assistance Program, which provides medications to 3,900 uninsured and underinsured clients, is facing a $12.6 million shortfall, reports the Washington Examiner.
Forecasting the Future of HIV As much as $722 billion might be needed to tackle HIV by 2031, if no cure or vaccine is found, according to new research published in The Lancet and reported by PlusNews.
October 12, 2010
Chevron Donates $25M to Global Fund The Chevron Corporation will donate $25 million to The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, bringing its six-year total to $55 million, according to a Chevron statement.
HIV-Positive Man Found Guilty of “Super” Aggravated Assault Adam Delgado, an HIV-positive man in San Antonio, Texas, was found guilty of “super” aggravated assault and sentenced to three life sentences for the assault of two minors, reports WOIA.
Columbia University Tops Trojan’s Sexual Health Report Card Trojan Condoms released its annual Sexual Health Report Card, a ranking of U.S. universities and colleges, and Columbia University is seeded No. 1, according to a Trojan statement.
October 11, 2010
Calif. Gov. Vetoes $52M for 2010 HIV/AIDS Programs California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed the 2010 state budget on Friday, October 8, but used his line-item veto power to cut $52 million for HIV/AIDS programs, KABC reports.
Selling De-Identified Electronic Medical Records in Texas
The Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) has sold de-identified data from electronic medical records, according to a study in the Austin Bulldog and reported by CNNMoney.com.
CDC Expands HIV Prevention to Black MSM, Latinos
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is expanding its Act Against AIDS Leadership Initiative (AAALI), according to a CDC statement.
October 08, 2010
Wife Claims Baseball Star Hid HIV for Unprotected Sex Former baseball star Roberto Alomar's wife, Maria Del Pilar "Maripily" Rivera Alomar, claims in divorce papers that they had unprotected sex without him telling her that he was HIV-positive, The New York Post reports.
HIV-Positive Penn. Woman Wins Wrongful Eviction Case A client of the AIDS Law Project of Pennsylvania (ALPP) won over $63,000 in damages and penalties for being wrongfully evicted from Canal Side Care Manor, LLC, a personal care home, after disclosing she was HIV positive, according to an ALPP statement.
NY Gov. Wants Federal Funds for HIV/AIDS Rent Cap After vetoing a bill to provide rental assistance to clients of New York City's HIV/AIDS Services Administration (HASA), New York Governor David Paterson has expressed an interest in paying for such assistance out of federal funds, Gay City News reports.
October 07, 2010
HIV-Positive Muppet Stars in Nigerian Sesame Square
A spin-off of the iconic U.S. children’s television show Sesame Street is being produced in Nigeria, CNN reports. One of the main characters, Kami, is a five-year-old girl who is HIV positive.
AIDS Funders Discuss U.S. HIV Budget Shortfalls On Thursday, October 7, Funders Concerned About AIDS (FCAA) hosts a day-long meeting of corporate, philanthropic and government leaders in Oakland, California, to discuss innovative options to address budget shortfalls in the wake of the U.S. fiscal crisis.
HHS and PEPFAR Give $130M to African Medical Education The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is partnering with the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) to invest $130 million over five years to strengthen medical training in African countries.
October 06, 2010
Johns Hopkins and amfAR Partner on HIV Prevention for MSM in Africa The Center for Public Health and Human Rights (CPHHR) at John Hopkins University and amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research, have formed a partnership on HIV prevention for men who have sex with men (MSM) in Africa, according to an amfAR statement.
$4 Billion Donation by U.S. to the Global Fund Criticized The Obama administration has made a $4 billion donation to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, a 38 percent increase over the last donation, said Ambassador Eric Goosby, U.S. global AIDS coordinator.
Study: Most Teenagers Use Condoms, Most Adults Don't
In the United States, most teenagers use condoms—but less than half of adults do, according to a new study from Indiana University and reported by The New York Times.
New Strategic Plan at AIDS Vaccine 2010 Conference More than 1,000 researchers at the AIDS Vaccine 2010 conference in Atlanta launched a new strategic plan to speed up their efforts in the search for an effective HIV vaccine.
Officials Demand Override of HIV Housing Veto in N.Y. A group of elected officials are demanding the state legislature override New York Governor David Paterson’s veto of a bill that would have capped the rent of HIV-positive people who receive housing assistance from the government to 30 percent of their income.
CDC: HIV/AIDS Is 1 of 6 "Winnable Battles" in Public Health HIV/AIDS, smoking, obesity/nutrition, teen pregnancy, auto injuries and health care infections are the six "winnable battles" in public health as prioritized by Thomas Frieden, MD, MPH, the director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), The Associated Press (AP) reports.
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