The CDC HIV/Hepatitis/STD/TB Prevention News Update

MINNESOTA: "Minnesota Sex Education Proposal Broadens Curriculum to Include Contraception"

GLOBAL: "UN Asks Flyers to Click $2 for MassiveGood"

GLOBAL: "World Could Soon Shield Most Newborns from HIV: Global Fund"

PHILIPPINES: "Philippines HIV Cases Spike to Record in January"

UNITED STATES: "Future of AIDS Gels May Lie in Drugs, Experts Say"

OHIO: "Chlamydia, Hepatitis on Top of List of Local Communicable Diseases"

NEW JERSEY: "Prayer Week to Focus on AIDS"

NORTH CAROLINA: "Free HIV Testing at Dixie Village Shopping Center in Gastonia on March 10"

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA: "Dining Out to Help Others Eat"

ILLINOIS: "$475,000 Grant to Help Gay Seniors"

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MINNESOTA:
"Minnesota Sex Education Proposal Broadens Curriculum to Include Contraception"   back to top
St. Paul Pioneer Press , (03.03.2010)   Jason Hoppin

A bill before the Legislature would require Minnesota school districts to develop a comprehensive sex education program that includes information on condoms and other contraceptives. Current state law directs districts to offer programming to reduce the prevalence of STDs “that includes helping students to abstain from sexual activity until married.”

The new measure, sponsored by Sen. Sandy Pappas (DFL-St. Paul), would specify an “abstinence-first” emphasis. It calls for age-appropriate lessons on human sexuality and introduces, for the first time, language targeting sexual violence.

The bill seeks to establish standards, “and then an individual school district gets to choose the curriculum,” said Lorie Alveshere, policy director for the Minnesota Organization on Adolescent Pregnancy, Prevention and Parenting. She and other advocates maintain that comprehensive sex education efforts have been shown to delay sexual debut, reduce teen pregnancy, and lower a person’s lifetime number of partners. Pappas testified in favor of the measure Wednesday at a committee hearing in the capitol.

Minnesota Family Council President Tom Prichard said the media environment abounds with sexual content and information on contraception. Schools, he said, should balance those messages by promoting abstinence. “We don’t say use 'safe drugs,' we don’t say use 'safe cigarettes,' we don’t say 'use safe alcohol,'” he said.

Past moves to expand sex education have met with resistance from Gov. Tim Pawlenty, a Republican. This year for the first time, however, the federal government has made funds available to support comprehensive sex education programs.

GLOBAL:
"UN Asks Flyers to Click $2 for MassiveGood"   back to top
Associated Press , (03.04.2010)   John Heilprin

On Thursday, raising funds to fight HIV, TB and malaria, and to improve infant and maternal health got new momentum thanks to the launch of “MassiveGood.” The effort is a fundraiser for UNITAID, an international purchasing facility that lowers the cost of drug treatments for people in poor nations.

When travelers buy airline tickets online through certain travel agencies and Internet sites, a $2 donation to MassiveGood will appear alongside other ticket options such as car rentals or hotels. The voluntary donation can be made with the click of a button, though direct donations can also be made at the MassiveGood Web site. The option is not available when buying tickets direct from airlines’ sites.

Donations go directly to the Millennium Foundation, which was established to help achieve UN-targeted health goals, and UNITAID, which is hosted by the World Health Organization. The money will be channeled to those providing the treatments, including to former President Bill Clinton’s Health Access Initiative.

“I think this will catch on all over the world. And this is basically an institutionalized version of what we saw after the Haiti earthquake, where people were texting in $10, or $5 in Canada, in the automatic systems,” said Clinton. “These systems, I predict, will empower ordinary people to change the future of the world in ways that we can only begin to imagine.”

“Hundreds of thousands of women, children, and men will be able to access the most precious of human rights, the right to health care,” said Dr. Philippe Douste-Blazy, who chairs the Millennium Foundation and UNITAID and who first proposed the idea for MassiveGood.

Now active in the United States, the campaign eventually will be expanded elsewhere, said UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. “We hope MassiveGood will become a truly global phenomenon,” he said.

To learn more, visit www.massivegood.org.

GLOBAL:
"World Could Soon Shield Most Newborns from HIV: Global Fund"   back to top
Agence France Presse , (03.08.2010)   

The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria released its annual report today, saying mother-to-child HIV transmission could be virtually eliminated within five years provided the world continues to boost funds for the initiative. “A world where no children are born with HIV is truly possible by 2015,” Global Fund chief Michel Kazatchkine said at the report’s launch.

“It is also possible now to imagine a world with no more malaria deaths, since already an increasing number of countries have been reporting a reduction in malaria deaths of more than 50 percent over the past couple of years. No other areas of development have seen such a direct and rapid correlation between donor investments and life-saving impact as these investments in fighting AIDS, TB and malaria,” said Kazatchkine. A donor funding meeting is scheduled for later this month in the Netherlands.

Global Fund programs have provided antiretroviral (ARV) treatment to 790,000 HIV-positive pregnant women, representing about 45 percent of those in need. Reaching the goal of 100 percent depends on ongoing donor commitments, the fund said. The Global Fund is seeking at least $13 billion in support.

UNAIDS head Michel Sidibe noted that just a few years ago in Africa, less than 50,000 people were receiving ARVs. That number now totals 3.5 million. Worldwide in 2009, more than 4 million people were on ARV treatment and around 6 million with active TB were treated, according to the report.

Activists called on donors to keep their AIDS funding pledges. “We’re starting to see worrying signs that donors have actually thrown in the towel and are starting to shift their attention and accordingly their resources to other areas,” said Paula Akugizibwe of the AIDS and Rights Alliance for Southern Africa.

PHILIPPINES:
"Philippines HIV Cases Spike to Record in January"   back to top
Reuters , (03.04.2010)   

The Philippines registered 143 HIV diagnoses in January, its highest one-month total on record. In response, Health Secretary Esperanza Cabral said she will seek public funding for condoms, which would be distributed among high-risk groups. The request is politically contentious, threatening already shaky relations between the government and the Roman Catholic Church.

The government has stopped allocating money for condoms due to pressure from the Church, Cabral said. The Church was also instrumental recently in building congressional opposition to a reproductive health bill due to its promotion of sex education and contraception.

For most of 2009, HIV diagnoses averaged about 60 each month, according to the health department. However, in December the number shot up to 126 cases. Most of the January diagnoses were among men who have sex with men.

“We’re alarmed over the sudden big increase of HIV infection cases since December 2009,” Cabral said. “At the rate we are going, in three years we are going to have more than 30,000 people with HIV/AIDS in the Philippines.”

“I will continue to distribute condoms as a tool to create awareness on HIV/AIDS prevention,” Cabral said. The intent of the outreach is disease prevention, not birth control, she asserted.

UNITED STATES:
"Future of AIDS Gels May Lie in Drugs, Experts Say"   back to top
Reuters , (02.19.2010)   Maggie Fox

Research presented at the 17th Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections indicates a new class of antiretroviral drugs called CCR5 entry inhibitors could be used to produce an effective microbicide against HIV. The drugs block HIV from entering human cells using a type of cellular doorway or receptor named CCR5.

Dr. John Moore, of Weill Cornell Medical College, and colleagues tested the CCR5 inhibitor maraviroc, a Pfizer drug sold under the brand name Selzentry. Tests in monkeys showed a candidate microbicide containing the drug would protect a female from sexual HIV transmission for about four hours.

Scientists have long been searching for a cream, gel or vaginal ring that could provide a chemical shield against HIV, and several substances have been tested unsuccessfully. “The next wave of compounds is all going to be based on antiretroviral drugs,” Moore told reporters.

“The CCR5 inhibitors are compelling candidates as an alternative because these drugs are not being used for treatment in, for example, Africa,” said Moore, meaning there is less risk of resistance developing.

The approach could also be affordable, Moore noted. A single 300 mg maraviroc tablet retails for about $15 online and contains enough drug to fully protect roughly 15 macaques, he said. “That is broadly going to be applicable to women.”

OHIO:
"Chlamydia, Hepatitis on Top of List of Local Communicable Diseases"   back to top
Chillicothe Gazette , (03.04.2010)   

Ross County recorded 180 cases of chlamydia in 2009, the most for any communicable disease that year but a slight decline from 191 cases in 2008, health officials said recently.

“The bacteria that causes chlamydia infects the cervix and urethra, and the symptoms it causes are sometimes so mild they go unnoticed, especially in men,” said Helen Ricketts, the infectious-disease nurse for Ross County Health District. “But in women, over time the infection can spread to the fallopian tubes, causing serious damage to the reproductive organs.” The STD also potentially can cause pelvic pain, she added.

Last year, the county had 80 cases of hepatitis C, down from 135 in 2008, according to data in a forthcoming report. In addition, the county saw 46 cases of gonorrhea last year. Neither chlamydia, gonorrhea nor hepatitis C is vaccine-preventable, noted officials.

In a trend she called “both scary and sad,” Kathy Wakefield, the district’s director of nursing, said cases of pertussis, or whooping cough, jumped from seven in 2008 to 26 in 2009. “There is a vaccine, but many parents are choosing to not have their children vaccinated,” she said, adding that given the decline in vaccination, adults who are around children should consider having booster shots for vaccines that weaken over time.

NEW JERSEY:
"Prayer Week to Focus on AIDS"   back to top
Asbury Park Press , (03.05.2010)   Nancy Shields

The national organization Balm in Gilead Inc. has designated March 7-13 as National Week of Prayer for the Healing of AIDS. In Asbury Park, several related events are taking place at Allen Chapel AME Church, 214 DeWitt Ave. HIV screenings will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. on weeknights and from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, March 13. That same day, following a breakfast, Mayor Ed Johnson will speak at 11:45 a.m. ahead of the dedication of a “Living Hope” tree. Other opportunities for prayer and support are available; telephone 732-463-0560. For more on the nationwide awareness event, visit http://www.balmingilead.org/.

NORTH CAROLINA:
"Free HIV Testing at Dixie Village Shopping Center in Gastonia on March 10"   back to top
Gaston Gazette , (03.05.2010)   

On Wednesday, which has been designated National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, the Gaston County Health Department and the Los Angeles-based AIDS Healthcare Foundation will offer free HIV testing. “HIV is not something people want to think about, but the fact is we’re all at risk, some more than others,” said Michelle Reese, coordinator for the department’s Gaston HIV Outreach Program. “We hope to encourage more people to get tested during this event and make it a part of their annual health assessment.” The outreach will be held outside Compare Foods in Dixie Village Shopping Center, 2573 W. Franklin Blvd., Gastonia. For more information on the local event, telephone Reese at 704-862-5374. For more information on the national awareness day, visit http://www.hhs.gov/aidsawarenessdays/days/woman/.

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA:
"Dining Out to Help Others Eat"   back to top
Washington Post , (03.05.2010)   Julia Beizer

During Thursday’s Dining Out for Life event, 147 Washington-area restaurants will donate a portion of their proceeds to Food & Friends, a nonprofit that provides meals and groceries to people with HIV/AIDS, cancer, and other illnesses. Participating restaurants are donating 25 percent to 110 percent of sales. To access a list of restaurants, together with their level of giving, visit www.foodandfriends.org/dol.

ILLINOIS:
"$475,000 Grant to Help Gay Seniors"   back to top
Chicago Tribune , (02.17.2010)   Rex W. Huppke

The US Department of Health and Human Services has awarded a $475,000 grant to the Services and Advocacy for GLBT Elders, or SAGE, program at the Center on Halsted in Chicago. Among other purposes, the money will be used to purchase adaptive computer equipment for seniors with disabilities, conduct research on slowing the cognitive decline of seniors living with HIV, and produce a new film tailoring HIV prevention messages to people over age 50. Center Director Serena Worthington said the grant marks only the third time federal funds have been distributed to a program serving GLBT seniors.