Lois Quam to Lead U.S. Global Health Initiative Lois Quam, the former CEO of the Medicaid and Medicare division of UnitedHealth Group, will lead the U.S. State Department’s $63 billion Global Health Initiative (GHI)
Canadian Blood Services Proposes Relaxing MSM Ban Canadian Blood Services, the group that manages most of Canada's blood supply, is considering a change to its ban on blood donation from men who have sex with men (MSM) who have been sexually active since 1977
Surgeons More Cautious About HIV and Organ Transplants
The first documented case of HIV transmission through an organ transplant in more than 20 years has created a ripple effect on how surgeons evaluate high-risk donors, the Los Angeles Times reports.
San Francisco AIDS Foundation Relocating to Expand Services
The San Francisco AIDS Foundation (SFAF) will move February 1 into a new location at 1035 Market Street, a half block west of its current location, according to an SFAF statement.
UNAIDS, IOM Seek to Improve HIV Services for Migrants
An agreement to improve HIV-related assistance to migrants has been signed by the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), according to a UNAIDS statement.
January 26, 2011
Alaska Man With Hep C Charged With Attempted Murder for Spitting
Andre L. LaFrance, an intravenous drug user with hepatitis C, was charged with attempted second-degree murder for spitting on an emergency-room nurse in Alaska, the Anchorage Daily News reports.
Fiji Establishes New HIV/AIDS Unit Fiji has established an HIV/AIDS Unit within its National Occupational Health and Safety Workers Compensation Service, according to a Fijian government statement.
Florida County to Stop Primary HIV Care for Uninsured The South Florida Broward County Health Department will stop offering primary medical care on March 1 to uninsured people with HIV/AIDS and will turn them over to private providers, the Sun Sentinel reports.
Marriage Only for HIV-Negative Couples in Chechnya Islamic leaders in the Russian republic of Chechnya have ruled that clergy may approve a marriage only after receiving proof that both members of the couple are HIV negative.
HIV-Positive Airman in Kansas Sentenced to 8 Years
Tech Sergeant David
Gutierrez, an HIV-positive airman at McConnell Air Force Base in Kansas, was
found guilty and sentenced to eight years in military prison, The Associated
Press (AP) reports.
Florida ADAP Faces $14M Funding Gap
A funding gap of $14 million is threatening the health of HIV-positive people who receive assistance through Florida's AIDS Drug Assistance Program (ADAP), The Miami Herald reports.
Young Straight Couples Struggle With Defining Monogamy A new study shows that in 40 percent of heterosexual couples ages 18 to 25 who discussed monogamy, one partner said the couple agreed to be sexually exclusive while the other partner said there was no such agreement.
HIV-Positive Airman in Kansas Faces 53 Years in Prison
The lawyer for David Gutierrez—an HIV-positive noncommissioned officer at McConnell Air Force Base in Kansas—defended his client by claiming recent scientific research shows that unprotected sex does not amount to aggravated assault, The Associated Press (AP) reports.
“Abstinent” Young Adults Contracting STIs About 10 percent of young adults in a new study who tested positive for a sexually transmitted infection (STI) reported being abstinent for the past year, The New York Times reports.
Michigan Lawmaker Seeks to End HIV Prevention Funding Michigan GOP state Representative Dave Agema (RGrandville) has introduced a bill to eliminate state funding for HIV prevention, testing and care, the Michigan Messenger reports.
Ugandan Muslim Women Seek Promotion of Condoms Some Ugandan Muslim women have called for part of the $43,000 allotted to a local HIV prevention program to go toward promoting condom use among men.
AIDS United Grants $255K for HIV Programs in Puerto Rico AIDS United has granted more than $255,000 to 10 community-based organizations in Puerto Rico for HIV/AIDS prevention and care programs, according to an AIDS United statement.
NIH Gives $4.7M to Study Marijuana Use and HIV Researchers at three universities have been awarded $4.7 million by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to study how marijuana use can influence the development of neurological disorders in adolescents with HIV, The Gainesville Sun reports.
Madonna Expands Raising Malawi to Educate Girls Singer and actress Madonna is expanding the mission of Raising Malawi, a charity she founded that assists children with HIV/AIDS, The Huffington Post reports.
U.K. Pays Survivors Accidentally Exposed to HIV, Hep C
People accidentally exposed to HIV and hepatitis C by the National Health Service in the United Kingdom will receive payments from the U.K. government, The Northampton Chronicle reports.
Anderson Cooper to Air “30 Years of AIDS” on CNN Anderson Cooper will address the 30th anniversary of the first AIDS diagnosis with a one-hour special, according to a CNN statement. CNN will air “Hope Survives: 30 Years of AIDS” on Friday, January 14, at 9 P.M. Eastern time.
Pakistan Sex Ed Book for Muslims Stirs Controversy Sex Education for Muslims—a new book by Mobin Akhtar, an 81-year-old psychiatrist in Pakistan, which seeks to teach about sex from an Islamic perspective—has caused controversy in the country, BBC News reports.
New Hampshire School District Bans HIV/AIDS Group An HIV/AIDS group in New Hampshire has been banned from its school district after distributing safer-sex kits to a local high school on World AIDS Day 2010.
HIV-Positive Florida Prisoner Gets Medical Release
Betsie Gallardo, an HIV-positive inmate in Florida dying of cancer, has been given a medical release from state prison to a Miami-Dade hospice, The Miami Herald reports.
California HIV/AIDS Food Bank Loses Federal Funding Food for Thought, an HIV/AIDS food bank in Sonoma County, California, has had its federal funding under the Ryan White Health Care Act cut to zero, the Sonoma West Times & News reports.
January 05, 2011
“It’s Never Just HIV” Campaign Divides AIDS Activists
The graphic “It’s Never Just HIV” campaign by the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene has divided AIDS activists who disagree about its effectiveness at curbing HIV risk in young men who have sex with men (MSM), The New York Times reports.
AHF Gives $1M in HIV Meds to Florida ADAP Wait List The AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) will give $1 million in free antiretroviral drugs to Florida’s AIDS Drug Assistance Program (ADAP) for wait list patients and patients who have been disenrolled from the program, according to an AHF statement.
Donor Funding Cuts Threaten HIV Efforts in Cambodia A new study shows the loss of foreign donor funding during the next two decades could curtail Cambodia’s HIV/AIDS efforts, Agence France Presse (AFP) reports.
January 04, 2011
HIV-Positive Wisconsin Woman Denied Surgery Settles Lawsuit An HIV-positive woman in Wisconsin who was denied gallbladder surgery because of her status has settled her discrimination lawsuit against the doctor and center refusing her treatment, according to a statement from Lambda Legal, which represented the plaintiff.
HIV Deaths in New York City Fell Below 1,000 in 2009 The total number of HIV-related deaths in New York City fell below 1,000 in 2009 for the first time since the 1980s, according to the city’s year-end summary of vital statistics.
Philadelphia Holds Condom Wrapper Design Contest The Philadelphia Department of Public Health is following New York City’s lead by holding a contest to design its condom wrappers, The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.
Norman Fowler Heads Review of U.K. HIV/AIDS Efforts Norman Fowler, who was the health secretary under former Prime Minister
Margaret Thatcher, is heading a House of Lords investigation into the
continuing spread of HIV/AIDS in the United Kingdom, The Guardian reports.
Iran to Educate Women, Young People at High Risk for HIV Officials in Iran will implement a comprehensive five-year plan starting in 2011 to educate both women and young people at high risk for HIV, the Financial Times reports.
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