October 19, 2007

Schwarzenegger Terminates HIV Prison Bill

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has vetoed a bill that would allow health care agencies to distribute condoms and other forms of protection in California prisons (Earthtimes.org/AIDS Healthcare Foundation, 10/15).

“We are disappointed that Governor Schwarzenegger chose to veto AB 1334, a bill that would have helped reduce the spread of HIV and other STDs among California inmates and their post-incarceration partners,” said Michael Weinstein, president of AIDS Healthcare Foundation, which cosponsored the bill.

The governor’s office announced plans instead to create a smaller pilot condom-distribution program, but activists feel that this decision could cause infections that could be prevented with the condom bill. “We cannot waste precious time creating pilot programs to prove the effectiveness of public health measures that have been effective for a quarter of a century,” Weinstein said.