Russian government officials are considering halting required HIV testing of foreigners seeking residence in the country, The Moscow Times reports (themoscowtimes.com, 7/18).
“If they do it in the [United States], then it is very likely that it can happen in Russia too,” said Vadim Pokrovsky, head of Russia’s Federal AIDS Center. Along with the United States, Russia remains among a dozen countries with HIV-related travel restrictions, including Sudan, Saudi Arabia and Libya.
Existing Russian law dictates that visitors must test HIV negative before they are eligible for a visa enabling them to stay in the country for longer than three months. Those who test HIV positive face deportation.
On July 17, the U.S. Senate voted to remove travel restrictions on HIV-positive foreigners, but the House still hasn’t voted on the issue.
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Nick, Jackson, MS, 2008-07-22 11:50:29
Don't forget that New Zealand prohibits emigration to those who test HIV(+), so there's still a long way to go before de-stigmatization improves. Be sure that New Zealand is lumped in with those other "progressive" countries such as Libya, Sudan and Saudi Arabia.
Beth Benne, RN, is HIV negative, but
the virus has impacted her life. She currently supervises a biannual HIV/AIDS awareness week as
the director of the student health center at Pierce College, a
community commuter school in Woodland Hills, California.
Woman of the Month is supported by exclusive advertising from Gilead.
Overheard in the Women's Forum
"I recently met a guy who is negative. I did tell him about my status and he decided to kiss me anyway (we didn't go further than that). But a day later, he called and said that he actually had a mouth ulcer that time when we kissed and he was very worried. Asked if he can get the virus from me that way. For that moment, I felt so insulted and yet I felt so bad. It was my first time having a contact with a "negative" guy."
