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“The five-day International Congress on AIDS in Asia and the Pacific (ICAAP) in Bali concluded Thursday with country participants agreeing to strengthen their partnership and hear more voices of the affected communities,” the Jakarta Post reports. According to the newspaper, an estimated 4,000 delegates from 78 countries attended the meeting.

The participation of “groups representing key HIV-affected communities [who] took part in the five-day congress, including the networks of people living with HIV, sex workers, transgenders, men having sex with men, and people who use [IV] drugs” represented a big change from previous years, according to Dewa Nyoman Wirawan, co-chairman of the ICAAP steering committee. “Empowering people means that the affected communities do not only regain but also have ownership of their voices,” Professor Irwanto, the head of the 9th ICAAP Scientific Committee, said during the closing ceremony of the Congress Thursday. “It is important therefore to fully and constructively address any social, cultural and legal barriers preventing their meaningful participation.”

According to the Jakarta Post, other major goals from the conference include improving early detection of HIV in patients and ensuring “the accessibility and sustainability of antiretroviral treatment. The congress also recommends the need for good governance and leaderships to reach universal access for HIV/AIDS patients’ treatment, where countries in the region are told to scale up their intervention by mobilizing their internal resources and ‘reducing dependencies on external donors’” (Maulia, 8/14).

This information was reprinted from globalhealth.kff.org with kind permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Global Health Policy Report, search the archives and sign up for email delivery at globalhealth.kff.org.

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TIME examines the discriminatory efforts to keep Vietnamese children living with HIV out of the country’s public schools even though, by law, “[c]hildren cannot be barred from school because they or any of their family members have HIV/AIDS.”

“Discrimination against people living [with] HIV/AIDS is nothing new,” the magazine writes. “But the irony in this case is that Vietnam has some of the most sweeping HIV/AIDS laws in the world, says Jesper Morch, the UNICEF representative in Vietnam.” Yet, “[u]nlike the epidemic in parts of Africa, where the virus has cut a large swath through entire communities and few have been untouched, the number of HIV-positive persons in Vietnam is less than one percent.”

The article reports on what the schools are doing to increase HIV-positive children’s access to school, including door-to-door efforts to educate parents of school-aged children about HIV (Kennel, 8/24).

This information was reprinted from globalhealth.kff.org with kind permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Global Health Policy Report, search the archives and sign up for email delivery at globalhealth.kff.org.

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The Globe and Mail writes that “[w]hen India announced in 2007 that it had 2.3 million people living with HIV, rather than the 5.7 million reported the year before, the government first attributed much of the change to better data collection. Many in the AIDS field were skeptical.”

Anjali Gopalan, head of India’s Naz Foundation said, “We and all the other AIDS organizations think the number of people accessing services is increasing, so why are the infection numbers so low?” However, others say “more and more research points to a substantial change in sexual behaviour and with it a decline in the spread of HIV,” according to the newspaper.

“‘The decline is real. The numbers have plausibility and credibility,’ says Prabhat Jha, an epidemiologist who directs the Centre for Global Health Research in Toronto, and was an architect of India’s early AIDS-control program. ‘There has been a profound change in behaviour among clients and sex workers that accounts for most of the drop,’” the Globe and Mail writes. The article examines the mass distribution of condoms, media and educational campaigns, and the status of women in India, compared to efforts and cultural norms in Africa.

Despite progress, the newspaper writes: “HIV remains of critical concern here [in India]: With 2.3-million infected people, this country has the third-largest burden of HIV-AIDS in the world, and has succeeded in getting treatment to fewer than half of the people who need it.” Also, “[t]he successes achieved have been mostly in the richer south of the country.” In the north, “weaker governments and health systems … have yet to embark on serious AIDS-control programs” (Nolen, 8/31).

This information was reprinted from globalhealth.kff.org with kind permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Global Health Policy Report, search the archives and sign up for email delivery at globalhealth.kff.org.

© Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.

The international medical humanitarian organization Doctors Without Borders/Medecins Sans Frontières (MSF) today called on nine of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies to help accelerate the availability of new treatments for millions of people living with HIV/AIDS, by pooling their patents on a list of key HIV medicines.

A patent pool is a mechanism in which a number of patents held by different parties are brought together and made available to others for production or further development. Patent holders receive royalties paid by those using the patents. The mechanism has been instrumental in promoting innovations in the aeronautics and digital telecommunications industries, for example.

Make It Happen - Help Us Get HIV Drugs in the Pool

“It’s a simple idea: companies share their knowledge in return for fair royalty payments,” said Michelle Childs, director of policy and advocacy at MSF’s Campaign for Access to Essential Medicines. “But it has the potential to transform companies’ approaches to access to HIV medicines and foster innovation in a way that marks an alternative to the confrontation and litigation of the past.”

UNITAID, the international drug purchasing agency, is currently establishing a medicines patent pool for HIV drugs. Critical to its success will be the willingness of patent owners to participate, by including their patent rights in the pool.

“The scheme is voluntary, so companies have a choice — and today we’re asking them to make that choice,” said Childs. “This is an opportunity for these drug companies to demonstrate that they are genuinely committed to effective measures that allow access to life-saving medicines for people with HIV in developing countries. Some companies have expressed interest in the idea, but we need them to go further and put key patents in the pool.”

For people living with HIV/AIDS, the impact could be considerable. A patent pool could speed up the availability of more affordable versions of new medicines, as generic production could begin well before the 20-year patent terms expire. Currently, patent barriers can also prevent innovation such as new pediatric formulations or much-needed fixed-dose combinations.

“This opportunity comes at a crucial time,” said Dr. Eric Goemaere, medical coordinator for MSF in South Africa. “Many patients in our programs have developed resistance to their medicines and need to switch to newer, more effective drugs now. Because these are either unavailable or unaffordable, patients face a return to AIDS death row as treatment options dry up.”

MSF is launching an e-mail writing campaign calling on Abbott Laboratories, Boehringer Ingelheim, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Johnson & Johnson, Gilead Sciences, GlaxoSmithKline , Merck & Co, Pfizer, and Sequoia Pharmaceuticals to meet the promise afforded by this mechanism and put their HIV drug patents in the pool.

Click here for the list of drugs that MSF is calling for to be included in the UNITAID patent pool, and to learn more about each medicine.

MSF currently treats over 140,000 people living with HIV/AIDS in 30 countries.

Source
Doctors Without Borders/Medecins Sans Frontières

Terrence Higgins Trust with Age Concern & Help the Aged is launching a survey today to find out the needs and concerns of people living with HIV who are aged over 50.

The findings of the research, titled 50Plus, will be made available to services for both older people, and people with HIV, to help them develop appropriate support. Online and paper questionnaires will be distributed and can be filled in until January 4th, when the survey closes.

The questionnaire asks a series of questions about the participant’s life, hopes and concerns. It’s completely anonymous and there is a prize draw for two people, randomly drawn, who will each get £100 of shopping vouchers.

Lisa Power, Head of Policy at Terrence Higgins Trust said “Currently, we know we could be doing more for people over 50 with HIV, whether someone is newly diagnosed or has been living with the virus for decades. People need support in various ways and we want to ensure that service changes are based on the genuine needs of people over 50 with HIV, not on someone’s best guess. We hope to get as many people as possible filling the survey in.”

The research is funded by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation and is being managed by MBARC (incorporting Michael Bell Associates), who have a track record of research for people with HIV, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender people and people seeking asylum.

To find out more, please visit here.

If you’d like to participate, go straight here.

Source
Terrence Higgins Trust

World AIDS Day 2009 will be marked with both grim and hopeful data: more than 25 million people have died of AIDS worldwide since 1981; 33 million are living with HIV/AIDS. While potent, effective medications have changed an HIV diagnosis from death sentence to manageable chronic illness in resource rich countries, global rates of infection still outstrip prevention and treatment capacity. And, increasingly, past “knowns” don’t apply. Half of all people with HIV worldwide are now women. This and other shifts in HIV/AIDS prevalence, incidence, and demographics have Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing (JHUSON) faculty exploring avenues to more effective, community-based prevention and treatment of HIV.

Women: The Multiplying Faces of HIV/AIDS-Today, HIV is a women’s issue. Young African-American women are contracting HIV at rates exceeding those of all other groups. Women in sub-Saharan Africa are dying of AIDS at three times the rate of their male counterparts. JHUSON faculty are working to unravel risk and protective factors for HIV among women, to discern women at greatest risk for HIV, and to prevent HIV transmission. Professor and domestic violence researcher Jacquel
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yn Campbell, PhD, RN, FAAN, leads the way. Her meticulous community-based work in the U.S. and South Africa highlights the central role intimate partner violence (IPV) and other forms of sexual violence play in the transmission of HIV to women. She has found these types of violence increase women’s risks of contracting and dying from HIV/AIDS, whether in countries where HIV is readily diagnosed and treated, like the U.S., or in nations with significantly fewer health resources, such as South Africa.

Joining in the quest for knowledge about the relationship between IPV and HIV is Campbell’s frequent collaborator, associate professor Nancy E. Glass, PhD, MPH, RN, FAAN. Glass, whose work primarily focuses on IPV, has broadened her focus to explore issues at the intersection of HIV and violence in a study of women exposed to HIV as the result of rape in war-torn areas of the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly Zaire). When it comes to preventing HIV, Campbell observes, “If you’re being beaten up and raped, it’s hard to negotiate for condom use by an HIV-infected partner. And, as we know from our work in IPV, it’s also hard for women to admit sexual or other abuse and walk away from it. It’s all about relationships.”

Those relationships are at the heart of research conducted by professor Phyllis Sharps, PhD, RN, CNE, FAAN. An expert in racial and ethnic health disparities, especially in maternal and child health, Sharps was struck by the high HIV rates among women of color in their childbearing years and wondered what could be learned from HIV positive women to improve interventions, assessments, and prevention. Her findings from over 55 in-depth interviews have powerful implications, particularly for prevention. Simply put, women need more knowledge about HIV presented in ways that engage them, enlighten them, and empower them. Sharps observes “Many young women become HIV positive from one or two episodes of unprotected sex. Some don’t think to ask about HIV and condoms; some don’t know how to ask.” She has found that talking at young women doesn’t work. Reaching them means reaching into the very fabric of their lives by “finding interventions that can serve as models and adapt them for use in the inner cities and the rural hills. HIV isn’t about ‘those women’ any more; it’s about all women.”

The trio agrees that nurses can meet the challenge of HIV in women by helping women disclose IPV and other risk factors for HIV transmission such as unprotected sex and drug use. Campbell is “feeling increasingly hopeful. Public policymakers are starting to recognize the changing face of HIV. They can help us advance a public health agenda that promotes culturally appropriate prevention and intervention for women at risk for HIV.”

Infection Control and TB: Combating the Other Face of HIV-Assistant professor Jason Farley, PHD, MPH, CRNP, is an infection fighter working to halt the spread of resistant infections in hospitals, prisons, and other community settings. He’s now turned his research to the growing number of individuals with both HIV and drug-resistant infections at home and abroad to assess how the two problems affect each other. With co-occurring HIV and multi-drug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) affecting as many as 75% of patients with HIV in South Africa, Farley has just completed a study that evaluated treatment outcomes of MDR-TB before the widespread availability of anti-retroviral therapy for patients with HIV was available in that nation. Among the study’s large cohort, mortality among persons with both MDR-TB and HIV was twice as high as among patients with only MDR-TB. At home, Farley is evaluating the prevalence of multi-drug-resistant staph infections (MRSA) in patients with HIV and their sexual partners. He also hopes to evaluate the risk factors for harboring MRSA and pro
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tective factors for avoiding colonization. Farley notes, “This HIV-related research reminds practitioners that we can’t treat HIV in a vacuum. We need to approach HIV from a holistic perspective that can assess the presence of other problems such as co-occurring illnesses that can complicate care and treatment regimens for both.” In 2010, Farley will team up with the Institute for Johns Hopkins Nursing (IJHN) to give practicing nurses a refresher and update on HIV science and clinical practice. According to IJHN executive director Jane Shivnan, RN, MScN, AOCN, “This program couldn’t be coming at a better time since it responds to the recent rapid changes in who is affected by HIV/AIDS and how the illness is best managed.”

Public Health Nurse Education: A New Face in East Africa-Assistant professor Sara Groves, DrPH, APHN, BC, is a hands-on health problem solver whose nursing knowledge and researcher’s enquiring mind have been put to extensive use in her travels as a public health nurse. She’s worked to prevent maternal mortality in rural Haiti and to improve maternal and child health in Brazil. Now, she’s landed in Uganda as part of a partnership between the Johns Hopkins University schools of Nursing, Public Health and Medicine, and Makerere University funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Groves is working to help change ‘what is” to “what could be” in healthcare education, research, and practice in Uganda and elsewhere in East Africa, in part to reduce the incidence and transmission of HIV (and its fellow-traveler, tuberculosis) in the region. The program is expanding HIV/AIDS clinical services in war-torn northern Uganda, promoting hospital births to reduce mother-to-child HIV transmission and maternal mortality, and advancing circumcision and condom use to help decrease HIV spread. Working to buttress the skills of local nursing students, Groves also is emphasizing public health and primary care in rural areas, particularly when it comes to reducing the spread of HIV and its co-occurrence with TB. Groves says her work, both in Uganda and at home, is “guided by the knowledge that nurses can create change to move people out of poverty and provide real opportunity for health worldwide.”

Source
Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing

HIV and sexual health charity Terrence Higgins Trust (THT) is calling for people across Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin to get involved in World AIDS Day (December 1) this year, either by attending an event, making a donation to support local HIV services, or wearing a red ribbon to raise awareness.

World AIDS Day, which has been running every December since 1988, is dedicated to raising awareness of HIV and AIDS. In the UK alone, over 80,000 people are living with HIV and over 7,000 are diagnosed every year.

The following events, run in collaboration with Shropshire Buddies & Body Positive, are taking place in Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin for World AIDS Day:

- County-wide Awareness Drive (various times and locations across Shropshire)
Friday 27 November (10.00am - 2.00pm): Newport High Street
Saturday 28 November (10.00am - 1.00pm): Wellington High Street
Saturday 28 November (9.00am - 6.00pm): Telford Shopping Centre
Tuesday 1 December (9.00am - 6.00pm): Pride Hill Shopping Centre, Shrewsbury
Saturday 5 December (10.00am - 1.00pm): Ludlow Market
THT staff and volunteers will be out in force at locations across Shropshire in the run up to and immediately after World AIDS Day, raising awareness of HIV, collecting donations, and handing out red ribbons.

- Tuesday 1 December (10.00am - 5.00pm): Day of Remembrance, St Laurence Church, Ludlow
St Laurences Church will be open all day for people to light a candle in remembrance and celebration, with an hour-long vigil from 12.00pm - 1.00pm. THT will provide a display with information on HIV and how to prevent it. The day will conclude at 4.45pm with prayers of remembrance.

- Tuesday 1 December (6.30pm - 8.00pm): Candle-Lit Vigil, The Square, Shrewsbury
THT will be holding a special candle-lit vigil to remember those that have died and to celebrate the lives of those with HIV today. The vigil is open to all, and will feature a reading by Reverend Mark Thomas, a performance by Heart and Soul Community Choir, and a two minute silence.

Lotte Hakeman, Centre Manager for THT in Shropshire, said “World AIDS Day is one of the most important events in THT’s calendar. Currently in the UK one in four people with HIV don’t know they have it, so it’s vital that we continue to raise awareness. We hope local people will get involved in some way, either by attending an event, making a donation, or just wearing a red ribbon.”

Source
Terrence Higgins Trust

On the eve of World AIDS Day, the World Health Organization (WHO) is releasing new recommendations on treatment, prevention and infant feeding in the context of HIV, based on the latest scientific evidence.

WHO now recommends earlier initiation of antiretroviral therapy (ART) for adults and adolescents, the delivery of more patient-friendly antiretroviral drugs (ARVs), and prolonged use of ARVs to reduce the risk of mother-to-child transmission of HIV. For the first time, WHO recommends that HIV-positive mothers or their infants take ARVs while breastfeeding to prevent HIV transmission.

“These new recommendations are based on the most up to date, available data,” said Dr Hiroki Nakatani, Assistant Director General for HIV/AIDS, TB, Malaria and Neglected Tropical Diseases at the World Health Organization. “Their widespread adoption will enable many more people in high-burden areas to live longer and healthier lives.”

An estimated 33.4 million people are living with HIV/AIDS, and there are some 2.7 million new infections each year. Globally, HIV/AIDS is the leading cause of mortality among women of reproductive age.

New treatment recommendations

In 2006, WHO recommended that all patients start ART when their CD4 count (a measure of immune system strength) falls to 200 cells/mm3 or lower, at which point they typically show symptoms of HIV disease. Since then, studies and trials have clearly demonstrated that starting ART earlier reduces rates of death and disease. WHO is now recommending that ART be initiated at a higher CD4 threshold of 350 cells/mm3 for all HIV-positive patients, including pregnant women, regardless of symptoms.

WHO also recommends that countries phase out the use of Stavudine, or d4T, because of its long-term, irreversible side-effects. Stavudine is still widely used in first-line therapy in developing countries due to its low cost and widespread availability. Zidovudine (AZT) or Tenofovir (TDF) are recommended as less toxic and equally effective alternatives.

The 2009 recommendations outline an expanded role for laboratory monitoring to improve the quality of HIV treatment and care. They recommend greater access to CD4 testing and the use of viral load monitoring when necessary. However, access to ART must not be denied if these monitoring tests are not available.

Preventing mother-to-child transmission and improving child survival

In 2006, WHO recommended that ARVs be provided to HIV-positive pregnant women in the third trimester (beginning at 28 weeks) to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV. At the time, there was insufficient evidence on the protective effect of ARVs during breastfeeding. Since then, several clinical trials have shown the efficacy of ARVs in preventing transmission to the infant while breastfeeding. The 2009 recommendations promote the use of ARVs earlier in pregnancy, starting at 14 weeks and continuing through the end of the breastfeeding period.

WHO now recommends that breastfeeding continue until the infant is 12 months of age, provided the HIV-positive mother or baby is taking ARVs during that period. This will reduce the risk of HIV transmission and improve the infant’s chance of survival.

“In the new recommendations, we are sending a clear message that breastfeeding is a good option for every baby, even those with HIV-positive mothers, when they have access to ARVs,” said Daisy Mafubelu, WHO’s Assistant Director General for Family and Community Health.

National health authorities are encouraged by WHO to identify the most appropriate infant feeding practice (either breastfeeding with ARVs or the use of infant formula) for their communities. The selected practice should then be promoted as the single standard of care.

Benefits and challenges

An earlier start to antiretroviral treatment boosts the immune system and reduces the risks of HIV-related death and disease. It also lowers the risk of HIV and TB transmission.

The new prevention of mother to child transmission (PMTCT)
recommendations have the potential to reduce mother-to-child HIV transmission risk to 5% or lower. Combined with improved infant feeding practices, the recommendations can help to improve child survival.

The main challenge lies in increasing the availability of treatment in resource-limited countries. The expansion of ART and PMTCT services is currently hindered by weak infrastructure, limited human and financial resources, and poor integration of HIV-specific interventions within broader maternal and child health services.

The recommendations, if adopted, will result in a greater number of people needing treatment. The associated costs of earlier treatment may be offset by decreased hospital costs, increased productivity due to fewer sick days, fewer children orphaned by AIDS and a drop in HIV infections.

Another challenge lies in encouraging more people to receive voluntary HIV testing and counselling before they have symptoms. Currently, many HIV-positive people are waiting too long to seek treatment, usually when their CD4 count falls below 200 cells/mm3. However, the benefits of earlier treatment may also encourage more people to undergo HIV testing and counselling and learn their HIV status.

WHO, in collaboration with key partners, will provide technical support to countries to adapt, adopt and implement the revised guidelines. Implemented at a wide scale, WHO’s new recommendations will improve the health of people living with HIV, reduce the number of new HIV infections and save lives.

Resources:

For more information, please visit the following web sites:

http://www.who.int/hiv/accessformedia

WHO HIV/AIDS Department - http://www.who.int/hiv

WHO Child and Adolescent Health Department - http://www.who.int/child_adolescent_health/

Source
WHO

The National AIDS Fund (NAF) and Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (NYSE: BMY) announced today their intention to launch “Positive Charge,” a new multiyear initiative aimed at helping to break down the barriers that prevent people living with HIV from receiving HIV care, treatment and necessary support. The initiative is slated to launch in January 2010.

“Although we have come a long way in the fight against HIV and AIDS, there are more than a million Americans who are currently living with HIV and an estimated 640,000* people with HIV who, for a myriad of reasons, are either undiagnosed, not in medical care or not receiving HIV treatment,” said Kandy Ferree, president and CEO of The National AIDS Fund in Washington, D.C. “This is a unique example of how the business and community sectors can work side by side to better understand and tackle this important issue.”

Bristol-Myers Squibb commissioned a national survey over the past year to better understand the barriers to HIV testing, care and treatment. The survey concluded that there are significant personal, societal and structural barriers that prevent people from taking action. “It’s sad, but true that in 2009, stigma still plays a huge role in preventing people from getting tested and into care,” said Ms. Ferree. “We are proud to work in collaboration with Bristol-Myers Squibb to help break down these barriers by creating a targeted initiative that supports collaborative and highly coordinated, community-based efforts to reduce barriers and provide the supportive services people living with HIV/AIDS need to effectively access health care.”

The survey also revealed that some health care providers may underestimate the role that personal and societal barriers play in preventing people from seeking care or treatment. For instance, respondents were asked the reasons why people living with HIV were not receiving HIV care or treatment. Health care professionals, including physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, case managers, peer educators/counselors and mental health professionals/social workers, who participated in the survey viewed substance abuse issues, patients struggling financially and basic needs more strongly versus people living with HIV or AIDS. On the other hand, those diagnosed with HIV and not under medical care viewed fear of HIV medication side effects as the number one reason why they were not under care or on treatment; denial of needing treatment or care because they did not feel sick and HIV stigma followed. These findings will be discussed with health care providers and the professional community to encourage better alignment and communication with people living with HIV.

“These findings illustrate the continued need to address the key personal and societal barriers like stigma, fear and denial, as well as structural barriers such as the health care system capacity, lack of transportation and housing. In other words, we need to view the needs of the whole person, not just treat the disease,” said Ms. Ferree. “World AIDS Day is an opportunity for us all to remember that there are a lot of people with HIV/AIDS right here in the U.S. who can’t access medical care and we believe both the business and community sectors must work together to address these issues head on and ensure all people living with HIV/AIDS get the care they need.”

“We know this work is complex, but we are committed to success. This collaboration with the National AIDS Fund is intended to further our commitment to the fight against HIV/AIDS,” said Jill DeSimone, senior vice president, U.S. Virology, Bristol-Myers Squibb. “Over the last 20 years, Bristol-Myers Squibb has been on the forefront of innovation and this collaboration is another example of how we as an organization are committed to making a difference in the lives of people living with or at risk for HIV/AIDS.”

About the National Survey

The findings are the result of a national survey, conducted by a third party, of patients and health care professionals. Bristol-Myers Squibb commissioned a large quantitative survey of patients and health care professionals, including patients who were not being treated for HIV/AIDS and were diagnosed and under care, diagnosed and not under care, or at risk for HIV and health care professionals including physicians, nurse practitioners/physician assistants and allied health care professionals such as case managers, peer educators/counselors or mental health professionals/social workers. Interviews were conducted over the phone, online or in person and lasted approximately 30-45 minutes.

According to the survey, health care professionals were more likely to view substance abuse issues (66%) and patients struggling financially and basic needs (64%) as reasons why people living with HIV were not receiving HIV care or treatment. On the other hand, those diagnosed with HIV and not under medical care selected fear of HIV medication side effects as the number one reason they were not under care or on treatment (73%); denial of needing treatment or care because they did not feel sick (66%) and HIV stigma (60%) followed.

About the “Positive Charge” Initiative

“Positive Charge” is an outreach initiative designed to support programs customized to meet the unique needs of individuals living with HIV, and is dedicated to working with health care providers, community members, advocates, caregivers and families of people living with HIV/AIDS in order to assist them in overcoming the barriers that may be preventing them from getting the HIV care, treatment and support they need.

“Positive Charge” is also designed to make meaningful contributions to the scientific exchange and policy and advocacy dialogues to the benefit of people living with HIV/AIDS.

Source
Bristol-Myers Squibb
National AIDS Fund

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The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) on Wednesday announced that it will provide several housing assistance grants to help low-income families living with HIV/AIDS, the Boston Globe reports (7/23). “A record $310 million will assist 58,000 U.S. households annually, officials said,” KITV.com reports. The grants were distributed based on the number of AIDS cases reported nationwide. The Gregory House Programs of Honolulu, a nonprofit that provides housing assistance, substance use and other services, will receive $1.3 million (KITV.com, 7/22). The Frannie Peabody Center in Portland, Maine, will receive $1.3 million; the city of Portland will receive $1.4; New Hampshire will receive over $716,000; and the Burlington Housing Authority in Vermont will receive over $392,000, the Globe reports (7/23).

This information was reprinted from dailyreports.kff.org with kind permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily U.S. HIV/AIDS Report, search the archives and sign up for email delivery at dailyreports.kff.org.

© Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.

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