March News
Two New Reports from CDC
The NCHHSTP
Annual Report Fiscal Year 2009 and the
2010-2015
NCHHSTP Strategic Plan. They are both now available on the
NCHHSTP web site.
Join AIDSinfo in Observing National Women and
Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day
AIDSinfo At-A-Glance Volume 6 Issue 9
(3.5.10
March 10 is National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day (NWGHAAD). This
observance day is organized annually to highlight the impact of HIV/AIDS on
women and girls.
According to the latest surveillance data from the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention (CDC), in the 53 areas with confidential name-based
reporting, females accounted for 23% of reported cases of HIV infection in 2007.
From 2004 through 2007, the estimated number of newly diagnosed HIV/AIDS cases
increased by approximately 8% among females.
The theme of this year’s NWGHAAD is “Every 35 minutes a woman tests positive
for HIV in the United States. It's time to get tested.” AIDSinfo is
pleased to present a NWGHAAD Specialty Page to encourage participation in the
2010 Awareness Day. The page includes information about NWGHAAD as well as
HIV/AIDS-related information and resources specific to women and girls.
More information is available:
Statement of Anthony S. Fauci, M.D.
on National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day
(3.2.10)
In recognition of the fifth annual National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS
Awareness Day, NIAID Director Anthony S. Fauci, M.D., reminds us that in the
United States, women and
teenage girls accounted for more than a quarter of all new HIV/AIDS diagnoses in
2007 and more than 93,900 cumulative deaths from AIDS. Worldwide, half of the
estimated 33.4 million people living with HIV in 2008 were female, and HIV was
the leading cause of disease and death for women of childbearing age. Dr. Fauci
encourages women and adolescent girls to embrace routine HIV testing and, if
infected, to start treatment as early as their doctors recommend.
To read Dr. Fauci's statement, please click
here.
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Across the Nation
CALIFORNIA:
"San Francisco Gets AIDS Research Center Funds"
Bay Area Reporter (San Francisco) , (03.11.2010) Cynthia
Laird CDC NPIN Summary
The AIDS Office of the San Francisco Department of Public Health is to
receive $9.5 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funding
over the next five years, Mayor Gavin Newsom announced on March 9. The
money will be used to renovate the AIDS Office’s facility at 25 Van Ness
Ave., expanding its ability to conduct research. The construction
project is expected to create 100 new jobs. “This grant will provide the
AIDS Office with a research center commensurate with the world-class
work that has gone on there for the past 20 years,” Newsom said. The
grant is provided through the National Center for Research Resources at
the National Institutes of Health.
ILLINOIS:
"Red Pumps Help Bring Attention to AIDS"
Chicago Sun-Times , (03.09.2010) Cheryl V. Jackson
The “Red Pump Project” is encouraging women across the nation to wear
red shoes on Wednesday to bring attention to the day’s designation as
National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. Chicago-based bloggers
Lovette Ajayi, of AwesomelyLuvvie.com, and Karyn Brianne Watkins, of
TheFabulousGiver.com, launched the outreach last year. Project-related
happenings include awareness events across the country and a March 25
fashion show in Chicago honoring AIDS activist Rae Lewis-Thornton. For
more information, visit
www.TheRedPumpProject.com .
D.C. to be first U.S. city to give away free female condoms to fight
HIV/AIDS
By Darryl Fears
Washington Post (3.6.10)
The District will become the first city in the United States
to distribute female condoms free, part of a project that will make
500,000 of them available in beauty salons, convenience stores and high
schools in parts of the city with high HIV rates.
OKLAHOMA:
"House OKs Bill Making STD Exposure a Felony"
Tulsa World , (03.03.2010) Randy Krehbiel CDC NPIN Summary
Oklahoma’s House of Representatives on Wednesday voted 93-2 in favor of
a measure that would make it a felony to knowingly expose another person
to any STD. The legislation, sponsored by Rep. Wade Rousselot
(D-Wagoner), would change current law that covers HIV, gonorrhea, and
syphilis by including all STDs but dropping smallpox. Penalties range
from two to five years for exposing an adult to an STD, to life
imprisonment for exposing a child. HB 2732 now advances to the Senate.
http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=12&articleid=20100303_16_0_OKLAHO799051
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA:
"D.C. Rushing to Fix AIDS Records Snag"
CDC NPIN Summary
Washington Post , (03.02.2010) Sandhya Somashekhar; Debbie Cenziper;
Susan Kinzie
Federal funding of District HIV/AIDS care providers could be in jeopardy
following a Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) report
that details problems at clinics in Washington and in the region.
Last summer, federal monitors found that some programs did not appear to
be tracking key information about AIDS patients, including infection
levels, medications and lab tests. HRSA’s report said clinics might have
paid their bills by improperly tapping federal Ryan White funds. Federal
rules require the program to be a “payer of last resort,” meaning
clinics must bill Medicaid, private insurance, and other health programs
before seeking reimbursement through Ryan White.
“My sense is that perhaps it may be easier to just submit a bill to the
Ryan White program as opposed to going through a third-party insurer
where you have to substantiate billing,” said Douglas Morgan of HRSA.
Area AIDS advocates say lapses revealed in the report have been ongoing
at some clinics for years, despite oversight that should have been
performed by the District’s HIV/AIDS Administration (HAA). An outside
consultant found similar problems at more than 20 AIDS programs in the
region in recent years, records show.
“This could be a potentially devastating situation for us,” said
longtime AIDS advocate Patricia Hawkins. “There’s so much volume going
through the medical clinics, and for a long time, no one had been
adequately monitoring whether clients were actually eligible” for
federal assistance.
The Washington area receives roughly $45 million in annual Ryan White
funds. HAA is responsible for distributing a portion of the money to
programs in Northern Virginia, suburban Maryland, and West Virginia.
HAA officials acknowledged the deficiencies and said they are working to
correct the problems. If the lapses are not corrected, monitors could
ask for the federal money back.
HRSA approved about $3 million over several years to help the District
create a data-collection system. However, “the city is still working on
it,” Morgan said, noting that “things haven’t happened as quickly as
they should.”
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