WhiteHouse.gov Blog Feed: Office of National AIDS Policy

White House Office Hours: Combatting the Spread of HIV/AIDS Among Women and Girls

Tue, 03 Apr 2012 13:58:41 +0000

Note: This live session of Office Hours has concluded. View the full question and answer session below or at Storify.com

Last week, as part of these ongoing efforts, President Obama issued a presidential memorandum establishing an inter-agency working group on the intersection of HIV/AIDS, violence against women and girls, and gender-related health disparities.

On Wednesday, the co-chairs of the working group, Lynn Rosenthal, the White House Advisor on Violence Against Women and Dr. Grant Colfax, the Director of the Office of National AIDS Policy, will join us for a special session of office hours on Twitter to take your questions on the intersection of HIV/AIDS, violence against women, and gender-related health disparities and the importance of supporting continued research, mobilizing both the public- and private-sector, and engaging families and communities.

To learn more about the working group read the presidential memorandum and don’t forget to ask your questions during office hours on Wednesday.

Here are the details:

Join us for Office Hours on Twitter at 2:00 p.m. on Wednesday, April 4th
Ask your question on Twitter with the hashtag #WHChat
Lynn Rosenthal, the White House Advisor on Violence Against Women and Dr. Grant Colfax, the Director of the Office of National AIDS Policy, will respond to your questions in real-time via Twitter from @WHLive
Follow the Q&A through the @WHLive Twitter account
If you miss the live event, the full session will be posted on WhiteHouse.gov and Storify.com/WhiteHouse

We hope you can join us! Follow us on Twitter @WhiteHouseand @WHLive for the latest updates and more chances to engage.

The Next Step in Combatting the Spread of HIV/AIDS Among Women and Girls

Tina Tchen — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 15:08:28 +0000

As the Executive Director of the White House Council on Women and Girls, it is my honor to join Dr. Grant Colfax, Director of the Office of National AIDS Policy and Lynn Rosenthal, the White House Advisor on Violence Against Women, in announcing the next step in President Obama’s commitment to combat the spread of HIV/AIDS amongst women and girls. Please read on for more details.

There are approximately 1.2 million people living with HIV/AIDS in the United States, including more than 290,000 women. Black and Hispanic women account for nearly three-quarters of new HIV infections among women. In July 2010, President Obama launched the first National HIV/AIDS Strategy to provide a coordinated national response to fight the epidemic, with the goals of reducing new infections, improving health outcomes, and decreasing HIV-related health disparities. This past World AIDS Day, the President said that “When black women feel forgotten, even though they account for most of the new cases among women, then we’ve got to do more." President Obama was joined by Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton in a call to our partners—including government stakeholders at all levels, healthcare professionals, and HIV/AIDS service providers—to unite in an effort to usher in an “AIDS-free generation.” To reach this goal, it is clear we must address HIV among women, particularly among women of color.

As directed in the National HIV/AIDS Strategy, Federal agencies are collaborating in new ways. We are embracing scientific findings to implement evidenced-based prevention methods in order to be more effective at preventing new HIV infections, and we are exploring new approaches to integrate prevention and care. As part of this ongoing collaborative approach, President Obama has issued a presidential memorandum establishing an inter-agency working group on the intersection of HIV/AIDS, violence against women and girls, and gender-related health disparities. The President has asked Lynn Rosenthal, the White House Advisor on Violence Against Womenand Dr. Grant Colfax, the Director of the Office of National AIDS Policy, to serve as co-chairs.

The working group will include representatives from the Departments of Justice, Interior, Health and Human Services, Education, Homeland Security, Veterans Affairs, Housing and Urban Development, and the Office of Management and Budget. We will also tap the wealth of expertise and experience of members of the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS. In addition, representatives from the Department of State, the United States Agency for International Development, and the Gender Technical Working Group from the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), will share lessons learned and evidence-based best practices based on the global experience.

When we address the domestic public health threat of HIV/AIDS, we cannot ignore the detrimental effects of gender-based violence and gender-related health disparities, particularly within underserved communities. The Administration commemorated this year’s National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day by hosting a White House event to highlight how these intersecting factors contribute to poor health outcomes among women and girls. The meeting included expert panel discussions; announcements regarding several domestic and global initiatives; and dialogues with community members. The President’s directive builds upon the momentum generated at the meeting. It commits to an ongoing Federal effort to address the intersection of HIV/AIDS, violence against women, and gender-related health disparities through applying evidence-based strategies, engaging families and communities, supporting research and data collection, and mobilizing both public- and private-sector resources.

For details on the mission and function of the Working Group, please see the Presidential Memorandum.

Tina Tchen is Director of the White House Office of Public Engagement and Executive Director of the Council on Women and Girls.

A Transformative Time for HIV Prevention and Care

Dr. Grant Colfax — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 13:21:09 +0000

It’s a great honor to join an Administration that’s done so much to address the HIV epidemic. I especially want to acknowledge ONAP’s prior director, Jeff Crowley, for his stellar leadership over the past three years.

This is a transformative time for HIV prevention and care: recent research breakthroughs in testing and treatment mean that a future AIDS-free generation is a real possibility. While there is much to be done, it is remarkable how far we’ve come.

I’m especially grateful that my first day on the job included a White House commemoration of National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. This meeting of community members, researchers, and Federal representatives focused on the intersection of HIV/AIDS, violence against women, and gender-related disparities. We reviewed data that show women account for nearly a quarter of new HIV cases in the United States, and that the majority of these cases are among women of color. Especially concerning is that HIV infection rates among black women are over fifteen times higher than in white women; rates among Hispanics/Latinas are five times higher.

The meeting included the announcement of the formation of two important working groups to make recommendations for moving forward on this important issue. The inter-agency Federal working group will be co-chaired by me and Lynn Rosenthal, the White House Advisor on Violence Against Women, and will comprise of members of multiple Federal agencies to ensure an interdisciplinary and coordinated approach. A second group comprised of a diversity of members from the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS (PACHA) will also meet soon. I’d like to thank personally the meeting’s organizers, speakers and participants for an inspirational event.

The working groups’ recommendations will include informing the multiple current Federal efforts addressing the HIV care and treatment needs of women and girls. Some examples are the CDC’s “Take Charge. Take the Test” initiative to increase HIV testing among women; the NIH-supported WIHS study, the longest ongoing women’s cohort study ever in the United States; and the expansion of HIV testing and linkage to care efforts at Family Planning Clinics. Perhaps most exciting, in 2011 alone, the Affordable Care Act expanded coverage of preventive services to 54 million people, including more than 20 million women.

On a more personal note, as a healthcare provider and someone who has guided implementation of HIV prevention efforts at the local level, I will ensure that the voices of persons living with HIV and those at high risk of infection, including women, are at the front and center of ONAP’s work, every day. It is only through listening to these voices that we will be able to move forward effectively in confronting the epidemic.

Within this context, I look forward to leading ONAP and guiding implementation of the National HIV/AIDS Strategy, with the goal of realizing the President’s vision that “The United States will become a place where new HIV infections are rare, and when they do occur, every person, regardless of age, gender, race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, or socio-economic circumstance, will have unfettered access to high quality, life-extending care, free from stigma and discrimination." We all share this vision. Working together, we will make it a reality.

Dr. Grant Colfax is Director of the Office of National AIDS Policy

Commemorating National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day

James Albino — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 19:16:00 +0000

On Wednesday, March 14th at 8:30a.m. EST, please join the White House as we commemorate National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. This multi-agency event will discuss the intersection of HIV/AIDS, violence against women, and gender related health disparities. Speakers and panelists will examine the juncture of these three important issues that impact women’s lives both domestically and globally.

You can watch the event live at: http://www.whitehouse.gov/live.You can also join the conversation on Twitter by following @AIDSgov and @PEPFAR and by using #NWGHAAD.

White House Meeting on the Intersection of HIV/AIDS, Violence against Women and Gender Related Health Disparities

Welcome and Event Overview
Global Announcement
Framing the Data: A Presentation by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Research Update: A Brief Update on Ongoing Research by the National Institutes of Health
Panel Discussion: Linkage between HIV/AIDS and violence against women; a discussion of these issues and gender related health disparities in the global/domestic context.
Domestic Announcement
Global and Domestic Synergy
Closing Remarks

James Albino is the Senior Program Manager of the Office of National AIDS Policy

Commemorating National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day

Valerie Jarrett — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 14:00:00 +0000

On this, the 12^th annual National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, I remember my sister-in-law’s fight with the disease. Tragically, she did not win that fight – she left behind a devastated husband and five-year old daughter. But it is in her memory, and the memory of all the friends and loved ones we have lost, that we vow to keep working toward the day when HIV/AIDS is history.

This past December, on World AIDS Day, President Obama spoke about the United States’ commitment to ending HIV/AIDS. In a speech at George Washington University, he told the audience, “Make no mistake, we are going to win this fight. But the fight is not over … not by a long shot.”

Sadly, this is especially true in the African-American community. Black Americans represent 12 percent of the U.S. population, but they account for 44 percent of new HIV infections. Among young black gay men alone, infections have increased by nearly 50 percent in just three years, and black women account for the largest share of HIV infections among women. We each must do our part by getting tested regularly, and by educating those in our community about what they can do to help end the epidemic.

President Obama is committed to doing his part as well. In 2010, he released the nation’s first comprehensive HIV/AIDS plan. Together with Secretary Clinton, he has helped assemble a coalition of governments, healthcare professionals, and service providers. They have set a goal that would have been unthinkable just a few decades ago: an AIDS-free generation, in which virtually all children are born HIV-free, and prevention tools help them stay HIV-free throughout their lives.

We will not achieve this goal overnight. But we know that we must keep making progress, each and every day. For our communities and our families, the stakes are simply too high for us to be satisfied with anything less.

So today, we do more than commemorate those we have lost. We rededicate ourselves to the work ahead. Because even when it comes to an epidemic as devastating as HIV/AIDS, we have the chance to write our own destiny. As President Obama said in December, “We can end this pandemic. We can beat this disease. We can win this fight.”

For more information about National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day and this Administration’s efforts to fight HIV/AIDS in the Black community, visit www.aids.gov.

Conversations on National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day

James Albino — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 13:45:00 +0000

Ed. note: This is cross-posted from blog.aids.gov.

February 7, 2012 marks the 12th year for National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day (NBHAAD), a national community mobilization initiative that focuses on promoting HIV education, testing, involvement, and treatment to African Americans, who are disproportionately at risk for HIV/AIDS. As part of the Federal observance of NBHAAD, I spoke with three people who are helping to lead the response to HIV/AIDS in the African American community. They included:

Dr. Kevin Fenton, Director, National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention, at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Dr. Deborah Parham Hopson, Associate Administrator, HIV/AIDS Bureau, at the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)
Mr. Ronald Johnson, Vice President of Policy and Advocacy, AIDS United.

Each of the interviewees had an opportunity to discuss how NBHAAD can make communities more effective in responding to HIV/AIDS.

I also sat down with Reverend Edwin Sanders, Senior Servant at the Metropolitan Interdenominational Church in Nashville, Tennessee to talk about the role of faith-based organizations in facing the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Reverend Sanders spoke about the importance of the National HIV/AIDS Strategy in the faith community and gave examples of how the faith community is using the NHAS.

James Albino is the Senior Program Manager for the Office of National AIDS Policy

Recognizing National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness day

James Albino — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 23:10:03 +0000

In recognition of National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day – February 7, Dr. Kevin Fenton, Director of CDC’s National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention released the following message:

On this National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, we have greater opportunity than ever before to reverse the HIV epidemic in Black America and the nation as a whole.

Today, we have a National HIV/AIDS Strategy that directs the nation to focus its prevention efforts on communities at greatest risk, including African-Americans – the racial group most severely impacted by HIV. We have an African-American community that is mobilized like never before, with many of the nation’s longstanding black national organizations making HIV prevention a key priority.

Over the past several years, we have also witnessed tremendous breakthroughs in HIV prevention that can help alter the course of the epidemic. Rates of HIV testing are growing and are at an all-time high. Yet research now shows that early treatment not only provides improved health and much longer lives for people living with HIV, but it also can reduce their risk of passing the virus to partners by 96 percent. And new prevention tools – like a daily pill – have been shown to significantly reduce the risk of HIV infection in some high-risk populations, when combined with other prevention measures.

Now despite these important advances, the fight against this disease is far from over. The harsh reality is that today, even in the face of great hope and promise, African-American communities continue to be devastated by HIV. Although only 14 percent of the U.S. population, African-Americans account for almost half of those living and dying with HIV/ AIDS in this country.

And HIV touches every corner of the black community and the impact of HIV has been especially devastating among black youth. Approximately 40 percent of new infections among blacks are now occurring among those aged 13 and 29 years. Young black gay and bisexual men are the most severely affected, experiencing a nearly 50 percent increase in new HIV infections over the past few years. In addition, HIV is now the third leading cause of death among black women in the prime of their lives – those aged 35 to 44 years.

Now to turn the tide on this epidemic, we must confront the complex social and environmental conditions that help fuel the HIV epidemic in African-American communities. Lack of access to health care plays an important role. We know that those who don’t have the means to see a doctor may not get an HIV test or HIV treatment until it’s far too late. We also know that nearly one in five African-Americans are without health insurance.

Where you live and where you choose your sexual partners also has a significant impact on your HIV risk. Higher rates of HIV that exist in black communities and the fact that African-Americans tend to select partners who are of the same race increases the likelihood of being exposed to HIV infection with each sexual encounter.

Homophobia and stigma – far too prevalent in many communities – prevents too many in the black community from getting tested, and if HIV positive, from getting treated.

HIV prevention in black communities remains one of our top public health priorities. Last year, for example, CDC invested more than half of its HIV prevention budget to fight HIV among African-Americans. We’ve expanded initiatives to reach more African-Americans with HIV testing and increased the number and reach of HIV prevention programs in black communities. We are working with our partners, like those in the Act Against AIDS Leadership Initiative, to launch campaigns and undertake activities aimed at increasing HIV testing and awareness among black women and black gay and bisexual men, among other groups.

Yet together we have much more work to do. Today, I call on the faith community, the public health and community leaders, teachers, parents and business leaders – both within and outside black communities – to maximize the powerful tools we now have at our fingertips and to work together to bring this epidemic to an end.

I also urge each of you to do your part. Get tested for HIV. If you are sexually active, use condoms consistently and correctly to protect yourself and your partners. If you are a person living with HIV, get and stay in treatment and take the necessary steps to prevent HIV transmission to your partners. You can learn more at www.actagainstaids.org. We can end this crisis. And we must remember that HIV is completely preventable. By working together, we can put an end to this epidemic in our lifetimes.

For more information, visit AIDS.gov

James Albino is the Senior Program Manager in the Office of National AIDS Policy

Persistence, Promise, and Hope for the End: A New Year’s Message

James Albino — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 23:08:37 +0000

Ed. Note: Cross-posted from blog.AIDS.gov

In the tumult of the holiday shopping, seasonal traffic delays, and endless bowls of eggnog, it was easy to miss the news that Science—one of the world’s leading scientific research journals—had chosen an HIV-related clinical trial as its 2011 Breakthrough of the Year. I caught that news while trying to wrap up some last-minute items, and, later, I took a moment to reflect on this announcement. This was perhaps the first time in many years that Science magazine had featured an issue related to HIV/AIDS research so prominently on its cover. I would like to highlight the importance of that piece of news and share some perspective on what it might mean for the future.

In the December 23 issue, Science said: “The year 2011 saw scientific research that stretched from the farthest reaches of the universe to the deepest mysteries of the cell. Following a yearly tradition, Science‘s editors and news staff have selected one Scientific Breakthrough of the Year and nine runners-up.” Their choice was the HPTN 052 clinical trial, an international HIV-prevention trial sponsored by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID).

The study found that HIV-infected heterosexual individuals who begin taking antiretroviral medicines when their immune systems are relatively healthy are 96 percent less likely to transmit the virus to their uninfected partners. The editors noted that they chose the study “because of HPTN 052′s profound implications for the future response to the AIDS epidemic.”

According to the magazine, Dr. Myron Cohen, director of the Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and the lead researcher for the HPTN 052 trial, said the finding’s impact surprised him: “People were interested in the idea of treatment as prevention, but it (the study) created a hurricane-force wind behind the strategy.” In further conversation, Dr. Cohen told me that “the HPTN 052 study has galvanized incredibly rapid policy change, and seems to have made the somewhat cautious prevention community very, very bold.”

The HPTN 052 study demonstrated that “treatment as prevention” works—and gives us new hope and optimism for the future. This is wonderful news! It is acknowledgment of the groundbreaking work that so many have been doing to achieve the vision expressed by President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton—the vision of “creating an AIDS-free generation.” It also echoes the sentiment of the leaders who recently gathered on World AIDS Day to mark “the beginning of the end of AIDS.”

For me, it was nothing short of an epiphany to hear and internalize the notion of an AIDS-free world. A little over a decade ago, I was the Executive Director of an HIV/AIDS hospice in Puerto Rico, where we provided palliative care for people who were in the advanced stages of AIDS. Weekly, I would meet with the medical staff and determine which patients were closest to death. The chaplain, clinical social worker, and I would then begin the difficult process of making calls to patient’s friends and family, exhorting them to pay a visit and take the necessary steps in advance of the patient’s death. Often, because of fear, stigma, and discrimination, many of our patients passed without a familial visit – sometimes dying with the staff and me as their last comforting voice. The notion of ending AIDS was not in our consciousness; at the time, AIDS as an end-point was our reality. We were in a race against illness, stigma, discrimination, and death, but we had little notion of how many miles we would have to run before we could rest.

Fast forward to August 2011. I was first mesmerized by the possibility of an AIDS-free world when I heard Dr. Jonathan Mermin, from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, speak at the 2011 National HIV Prevention Conference in Atlanta. Dr. Mermin gave a thorough summary of the state of the epidemic, advances in prevention efforts (particularly healthcare as prevention), and he had the temerity to conclude his presentation by emphatically affirming that the end of the epidemic was within reach in our lifetime.

It was the first time I truly allowed myself to envision that future.

I recently talked to Dr. Mermin about this pivotal moment and he reflected: “Today, I woke up and planned my day in the usual way, filling my mind with meetings, documents, phone calls, and paperwork–and I forgot to learn from the past. For many years, we prayed for a few more months or days with the partners, friends, and family with HIV whom we cared for during the times when compassion and love were the best medicine. But we also worked fervently on research, prevention, and care. Because of that, in 2012, antiretroviral therapy not only provides people with HIV an almost normal life expectancy, but it also greatly reduces the chance that HIV will be transmitted to others. These new possibilities join old prevention tools such as condoms, testing, education, and community mobilization. The arrival of new tools for HIV care and prevention has led the nation to consider HIV less of a problem—a solved issue from the past. Yet, the number of people with HIV in the United States has increased by 60% over the past 15 years, mostly because individuals in care are living longer. Just as we did not give up on hope and action 20 years ago, we should use the knowledge of a growing epidemic and the presence of effective interventions to inspire us to act now. For the first time, I have the realistic expectation that we can reverse the epidemic in our country. Will we?”

On Worlds AIDS Day, I sat in the audience with a tearful crowd as the President, joined by former Presidents Bush and Clinton (via video link) and a multitude of world leaders, proclaimed a global effort to mark the beginning of the end of AIDS – a notion that for me, for many years and for too many patients, seemed faraway.

As 2012 begins, we should take time to celebrate the advances that our scientists and healthcare professionals have made, including the recognition of HPTN 052 by Science. The challenge now is to continue the research progress with safer, longer-acting antiretroviral drugs that will help people living with HIV stay on their medications. Further, the ultimate tools to control and end the HIV/AIDS epidemic—a safe, effective, and durable HIV vaccine and a cure for HIV infection—must remain high-priority research goals.

There were too many years when there was no cause to rejoice. Optimism is a welcome feeling, but we cannot replace our sense of progress with complacency. We must sustain the research progress, since new and innovative strategies will accelerate our progress towards controlling and ending the AIDS epidemic. We can bolster that progress by continuing to press for the implementation of the National HIV/AIDS Strategy.

We have the momentum. We have the persistence and the commitment to ending HIV/AIDS, once and for all. And I can finally see the hope and promise of the finish line.

James Albino is the Senior Program Manager of the Office of National AIDS Policy.

A Focus on Women and AIDS: Nationally and Abroad

Riana Lynn — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 18:11:49 +0000

“When black women feel forgotten, even though they account for most of the new cases among women, then we’ve got to do more." --President Obama, December 1, 2011

December 1 marked World AIDS Day, a time to remember those that have been affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic over the past 30 years. Today, we must also continue to recognize and push forth the efforts to aid individuals affected across the globe. In recent years, we have seen success in programs such as the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, but we must remember the toll this disease takes on our women, and ultimately our communities. Although rates of HIV/AIDS have been decreasing across many countries, there are many factors that have kept women and girls at risk. Globally, many prevention efforts and treatments still need to be successfully implemented in order to change uneven progress in the health of the world’s women and girls. With the world facing many battles, young women in many parts of the world are still becoming infected with HIV/AIDS. As of today, HIV is the leading cause of death and disease among women aged 15 to 49 years worldwide. Domestically, rates in many communities continue to effect women disproportionately, in better words: we’ve got to do more. President Obama and his Administration are committed to solving the AIDS crisis; an epidemic that has put women, and their families, at great risk.

During his speech at an event called “The Beginning of the End of AIDS,” at George Washington University, marking World AIDS Day, the President announced that the Administration is directing $50 million in increased funding for domestic HIV/AIDS treatment and care. The data shows a clear need for this increase in funding. According to 2009 HIV surveillance data by the Centers for Disease Control, women represented 24% of all diagnoses of HIV infection among United States (US) adults and adolescents in 40 states. Black and Latina women are disproportionately affected at all stages of HIV infection compared with women of other races/ethnicities. At some point in her lifetime, 1 in 139 women will be diagnosed with HIV infection; with Black and Hispanic/Latina women at higher risk than women of other races/ethnicity.

Over the past several years, the global HIV/AIDS epidemic has been met with increasing efforts across the international community and shown great potential. As stated by the Office of Women’s Health, numerous initiatives to promote prevention and treatment efforts have been implemented by governments and organizations worldwide. They have also noted that, in 33 countries, HIV incidence has dropped by more than 25 percent over the past decade; 22 of those countries are in sub-Saharan Africa. Even with these improvements, we must remember that challenges still remain.

President Barack Obama delivers remarks on World Aid's Day event at George Washington University in Washington, Dec. 1, 2011. (Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson)

Every year, women face a number of risk factors that may contribute to overall risk for HIV infection. Serious issues, such as violence against women, play a big role in causing HIV infection among women. In date rape or sexual assault, forced sex can increase pathways for HIV. Women who have experienced sexual abuse may be more likely than women with no abuse history to use drugs as a coping mechanism, have difficulty refusing unwanted sex, or engage in high-risk sexual activities. This is especially true for young girls, who are involved in higher rates of domestic violence cases. Along with violence, women are faced with a number of socio-economic issues associated with poverty, including: limited access to high-quality health care, the exchange of sex for money, or other high risk activities to meet their needs.

As World AIDS Day has passed in the words of the President, “we come together, as a global community, across continents, faiths and cultures, to renew our commitment to ending the AIDS pandemic - once and for all”. In the coming days, months, years we must continue to come together to fight for the end of HIV/AIDS and its effect on women. For every woman and girl that is affected by HIV, there is a larger community toll; as the health of a woman represents the health of her community. We must remember that HIV is an entirely preventable and treatable disease, so be sure to remind the women in your community of the effects of HIV, and remember the women across the world that have been affected by this disease. Additionally, please share what the U.S. government is doing globally and domestically to prevent and treat HIV in women and girls:

Global AIDS Activities within the Federal Government

Visit here for a range of information on Women and HIV/AIDS.

National HIV/AIDS Strategy- AIDS.gov

Visit here for strategy fact sheets.

Women’s Health- Office for Women’s Health

Visit here for a range of information on Women and HIV/AIDS.

Also, a report is available from the June 2010 forum on: Bringing Gender Home: Implementing Gender-Responsive HIV/AIDS Programming for U.S. Women and Girls forum

Visit here for more information on violence against women and HIV risk

Women’s Data- Centers for Disease Control

Visit here for a range of data, programs and interventions on HIV and Women.

Minority Data- Office of Minority Health

Visit here for health resources and information on minority communities in the United States.

Global HIV/AIDS Fact Sheets- Kaiser Family Foundation

Visit here for fact sheets on a range of global and domestic HIV/AIDS information.

Riana Lynn is a former White House Intern.

Getting to Zero on World AIDS Day

Thu, 01 Dec 2011 20:02:12 +0000

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President Obama today marked World AIDS Day, speaking at an event called "The Beginning of the End of AIDS" where he outlined the progress that has been made in the global fight against the pandemic:

Because we invested in anti-retroviral treatment, people who would have died, some of whom are here today, are living full and vibrant lives. Because we developed new tools, more and more mothers are giving birth to children free from this disease. And because of a persistent focus on awareness, the global rate of new infections and deaths is declining. So make no mistake, we are going to win this fight.

AIDS has claimed 30 million lives over the past three decades, and while the rate of new infections is going down in many countries, the President acknowledged that it is not declining in America:

The infection rate here has been holding steady for over a decade. There are communities in this country being devastated, still, by this disease.

When new infections among young black gay men increase by nearly 50 percent in 3 years, we need to do more to show them that their lives matter. When Latinos are dying sooner than other groups, and when black women feel forgotten, even though they account for most of the new cases among women, then we’ve got to do more.

So this fight is not over. Not for the 1.2 million Americans who are living with HIV right now. Not for the Americans who are infected every day. This fight is not over for them, it’s not over for their families, and as a consequence, it can’t be over for anybody in this room -- and it certainly isn’t over for your President.

President Barack Obama delivers remarks on World Aid's Day event at George Washington University in Washington, Dec. 1, 2011. (Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson)

The President announced that he is directing $50 million in increased funding for domestic HIV/AIDS treatment and care -- an additional $15 million for the Ryan White program for HIV medical clinics across the country. and an additional $35 million for state AIDS Drug Assistance Programs. He also pledged that America will continue to be a leader in the global fight against the pandemic:

Now, as we go forward, we’ve got to keep refining our strategy so that we’re saving as many lives as possible. We need to listen when the scientific community focuses on prevention. That’s why, as a matter of policy, we’re now investing in what works -- from medical procedures to promoting healthy behavior.

And that’s why we’re setting a goal of providing anti-retroviral drugs to more than 1.5 million HIV-positive pregnant women over the next two years so that they have the chance to give birth to HIV-free babies.

We’re not going to stop there. We know that treatment is also prevention. And today, we’re setting a new target of helping 6 million people get treatment by the end of 2013. That’s 2 million more people than our original goal.

Today’s event was sponsored by the ONE and (Red) campaigns and also featured remarks from Presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton, via satellite.

Musician Bono, center, listens as President Barack Obama delivers remarks at a World AIDS Day event at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., Dec. 1, 2011. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

New Update: Registering for the NHAS Implementation Dialogues

James Albino — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 14:26:15 +0000

In earlier blog posts we outlined the topic and format for a series of regional dialogues that the White House Office of National AIDS Policy will convene to focus attention on issues related to implementation of the National HIV/AIDS Strategy. These events will be a forum for Federal, state and local agency representatives, researchers, clinicians, the HIV community, and leaders from the business, foundation, faith and media sectors to share their diverse expertise, and collaborative experience.

The events are free, open to the public, anyone can attend. To help us better plan each event we ask that you register in advance for each of the events that you are interested in attending. You may register for as many events as you wish to attend.

Upon submitting your registration, you will receive a detailed confirmation letter via email.

Dialogue Topics and Locations: Updated October 14, 20111

Below please find the dates, times and location of the remaining three events:

Sustaining the Community-Based Response to HIV

Date: Thursday, October 20, 2011

Time: 3:00 – 5:30 pm (new time)

Location: University of Pennsylvania, Jon M. Huntsman Hall, Dhirubhai Ambani Auditorium, 3730 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA

Fostering Collaboration Between all Public and Private Stakeholders at the State and Local Leve

Date: October 25, 2011

Time: 6:00pm-8:30pm

Location: Manship Theatre at The Shaw Center for the Arts Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Maximizing Impact in Low-Prevalence Jurisdictions

Date: November 17, 2011

Time: 2:00 – 4:30 pm

Location: Drake University - Harmon Fine Arts Center, 25th St & Carpenter Ave,

Des Moines, IA 50311

Please continue to check the ONAP and AIDS.gov websites for more information.

James Albino is Senior Program Manager and he Office of National AIDS Policy

Using National Latino AIDS Awareness Day (NLAAD) to Redouble Our Efforts to Respond to the HIV Prevention and Care Needs of Latinos

James Albino and Miguel Gomez — Sun, 16 Oct 2011 20:58:16 +0000

According to CDC estimates, 9,400 Latinos in the United States were newly infected with HIV in 2009. Latinos make up 16% of the U.S. population, but approximately 20% of new infections. Sixty-four percent (or nearly two-thirds) of all HIV infections in the Latino community occur among gay and bisexual men. Among women, 1,700 heterosexual Latinas became infected in 2009, making them more than four times more likely to become infected with HIV than white women.

As Latinos working to support the National HIV/AIDS Strategy (NHAS), we see our families and friends living with HIV and some who are newly infected, and we look at these numbers with a sense of both sadness and urgency. In this 30^th year of the AIDS epidemic, it is completely unacceptable that HIV infection rates among Latinos are so high.

National Latino AIDS Awareness Day (NLAAD) gives us an opportunity to re-examine the impact of the HIV/AIDS epidemic on Latinos, and to redouble our efforts to find effective ways to respond to the epidemic in the U.S.

The NHAS is helping us to do this by requiring us to focus on three important goals: reducing HIV incidence; increasing access to care and improving health outcomes for people living with HIV/AIDS; and reducing HIV-related health disparities. The NHAS also calls on all of us to target our collective efforts at the populations at greatest risk. Latinos are not only disproportionately impacted, they also tend to be diagnosed later in the course of their HIV infection—meaning that they are more likely to develop AIDS within a year of their diagnosis. According to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Latinos progress more quickly to AIDS after an HIV diagnosis than any other U.S. racial or ethnic group. Exciting new research data has been published this year showing how effective HIV treatment can be at stopping HIV transmission and current drugs are helping HIV positive individuals lead long and healthy lives. If Latinos are being diagnosed with advanced HIV infection and are quickly progressing to AIDS, they are missing important opportunities to get the maximum benefits of the highly effective treatments we currently have available.

Responding to this disproportionate impact, the NHAS has helped to spotlight the need for special emphasis on HIV prevention, testing, and treatment for Hispanics/Latinos. Among its recommendations for addressing the epidemic among Latinos in the U.S., the NHAS mentions the following:

Offering HIV-prevention efforts that are culturally appropriate and available to acculturated and nonacculturated Latino populations;
Increasing the proportion of HIV-diagnosed Latinos with undetectable viral load by 20 percent;
Ensuring that high-risk groups have access to regular viral load and CD4 tests to track their health; and,
Promoting a more holistic approach to health that addresses not only HIV prevention, but also the prevention of HIV related co-morbidities, such as sexually transmitted infections and hepatitis B and C

We invite you to join us in observing NLAAD and to learn more about HIV/AIDS in the Latino community. We also invite you to share your plans to make the NHAS a reality in your community!

James Albino is the Senior Program Manager in the Office of National AIDS Policy and Miguel Gomez is the Director of AIDS.gov at the Department of Health and Human Services

Seattle Meeting Focuses on Ideas to Strengthen the HIV Workforce

Chantelle Britton — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 19:06:39 +0000

On October 4, 2011, the Office of National AIDS Policy (ONAP) hosted the second in a series of five Implementation Dialogues in Seattle Washington at Swedish Medical Center. The theme for this meeting was “Building Capacity Within the HIV Workforce so that it Delivers What We Need Today and Tomorrow”. The meeting was an opportunity to focus attention on the multi-faceted challenges we face with the HIV workforce, spark conversations around this issue, and encourage action and collaboration at the State and local levels. The meeting began with a Federal update, followed by a presentation on HIV workforce issues, a panel discussion, and a discussion between the panel and the audience, which included policy makers, academic experts, clinicians, providers, community advocates, patients, and other health professionals.

ONAP Director Jeffrey S. Crowley opened the meeting with remarks about the challenges we face with the HIV workforce and opportunities made available in the Affordable Care Act to bolster the workforce of clinicians and other health care providers. Dr. Todd Strumwasser, Vice President of Medical Affairs at Swedish Medical Center, provided opening remarks and emphasized that this meeting was a way to reaffirm our collective commitment to focus more attention on the domestic epidemic in our communities and around the country. Dr. David Spach, the Principal Investigator for the Northwest AIDS Education and Training Center at the University of Washington, gave an informative presentation on the key factors contributing to HIV workforce shortages in the nation. Dr. Spach focused on several key issues regarding the workforce supply, including the lack of exposure to an HIV curriculum during a medical student’s academic or residency training; the complexity of providing HIV care; the financial disincentives faced by medical students and medical residents; the competition between global HIV health work and domestic HIV health work; and the reluctance of some individuals to work with people living with HIV. Dr. Spach’s provided several recommendations that could be adopted to expand the HIV workforce, including the importance of active recruiting during a clinician’s medical school training or during their residency; increasing the amount of pilot programs for recruitment; supporting mentorships and building relationships between current HIV clinicians and future clinicians; providing innovative financial incentives for clinicians; and developing more programs that increase provider diversity.

Dr. Kathleen Clanon, the Medical Director of HIV Access in Alameda County, California, moderated a lively panel of federal, state, community, and academic participants. The panelists included: Mr. Richard Aleshire, Washington State Department of Health; Dr. Maggie Czarnogorski, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs; Dr. Mari Kitahata, University of Washington, Center for AIDS Research; Ms. Angela Powell, Health Services and Resources Administration; Mr. Randall Russell, Lifelong AIDS Alliance; and Dr. Adele Webb, Association of Nurses in AIDS Care.

The meeting touched on several key topics, including the role of the Ryan White HIV/AIDS program in supporting the HIV workforce, the importance of the Ryan White medical home model and how it supports a continuum of care. There was also a discussion about the opportunities that exist to attract new talent to provide HIV care and what actions need to be taken to engage non-HIV providers (i.e., those not experienced in providing HIV care and treatment) into HIV. Finally, there was a discussion about how we can engage private sector and philanthropic resources to generate local solutions. Some of the recommendations from the audience included the need of mentorship programs for new and future clinicians to cultivate a pipeline of experts in the field of HIV care. There was also a recommendation to acknowledge the significant role of other health professionals, such as social workers and public health workers and expand mentorship and other activities to support their continuing professional development as critical HIV providers. Other recommendations were made on how to better address the care and needs of people with HIV in jail and prison settings and how to engage physician assistants and HIV-specialty pharmacists into the care of people living with HIV.

Many ideas and recommendations were put forward during the meeting. In the coming weeks, ONAP will be developing a synthesis report of this and other meetings that will be made available on the ONAP website. In addition, all of the Implementation Dialogues will be videocast on the website.

If you have additional thoughts that you would like to share about this meeting or any of the Implementation Dialogues, please send them to AIDSPolicy@who.eop.gov.

Learn more about the Implementation Dialogues and register for upcoming events.

Chantelle Britton is a Policy Advisor in the Office of National AIDS Policy

Birmingham Kicks Off First of Five Fall Implementation Dialogues on the NHAS

Joan Romaine — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 15:15:22 +0000

The first of a series of five Implementation Dialogues was held on September 27 in Birmingham, Alabama, at the University of Alabama at Birmingham’s Alys Robinson Stephens Preforming Arts Center. The meeting focused on “Incorporating Prevention and Care Research Into HIV Programs” brought together speakers and panelists from across federal, state and local government, as well as experts from the HIV/AIDS community and research areas. Jeffrey S. Crowley, Director of the Office of National AIDS Policy (ONAP) welcomed the more than 150 guests, and thanked them for their work in support of the National HIV/AIDS Strategy. UAB President Carol Garrison, and Dr. Howard Koh, Assistant Secretary for Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services also spoke. Dr. Koh encouraged participants to make the National HIV/AIDS Strategy real in the southeast and around the country. He recalled the early days of the AIDS epidemic thirty years ago, and the extreme fear and stigma surrounding the treatment of the first patients, and the challenge of providing care with no plan or coordinated approach in place. He noted that while there is still a great deal of stigma and health disparities around HIV/AIDS, there is now a plan of action in the National HIV/AIDS Strategy, which he said has, “catalyzed the country”.

Attendees heard a presentation of research updates from UAB Associate Professor of Medicine and Project Director, UAB 1917 Clinic Cohort, Dr. Michael J. Mugavero. This baseline information of the latest HIV/AIDS research findings from the field (including HPTN 052 and CAPRISA 004) set the stage for the panel and community discussions, which were moderated by Dr. Michael Saag, Jim Straley Chair in AIDS Research and Director, Center for AIDS Research at UAB. The panelists included: Dr. Gina Brown, from the National Institutes of Health, Dr. Peter Leone, from the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, Dr. Deborah Parham Hopson, from Health Resources and Services Administration, Mr. Steve Wakefield from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and Ms. Tiffany West, from the District of Columbia Department of Health.

Many important themes and suggestions came out of the meeting, including the need to do more HIV/AIDS testing, and the importance of linking and retaining more people into care. In addition, the need to address the health disparities that exist and the barriers to identifying people early. Some discussion was had around the difficulty people and communities have talking about sex, which makes it challenging to address sexually transmitted infections. Additional discussions stemmed around the need to understand better what puts people at risk for HIV, what will keep them in treatment , and how to integrate policies and programs at federal, state and local levels. Recommendations included focusing on what people and groups can do that are scalable and figuring out what prevention and education messages work for which communities. Policies, such as opt-out testing were discussed as well in terms of their impact, as well evaluating what’s working, tailoring interventions and sharing information. These and other important ideas and recommendations were brought forward and the ONAP will be developing a brief synthesis of the implementation dialogue that will be made available to the public. All of the Implementation Dialogues will be videocast on the ONAP website.

Learn more about the Implementation Dialogues and register for upcoming events.

Joan Romaine is a Policy Advisor in the Office of National AIDS Policy, on detail from the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Mobilizing Public and Private Sector Investments to Support Critical HIV Services

Joan Romaine and James Albino — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 18:25:40 +0000

The White House Office of Social Innovation and Civic Participation and the Office of National AIDS Policy held a joint meeting on Friday, September 9^th on “Mobilizing Public and Private Sector Investments to Support the Goals of the National HIV/AIDS Strategy,” in which 25 members from the private sector and philanthropic community gathered to discuss ways to enhance existing support and investments targeted at HIV/AIDS prevention, care and treatment, as well as to strategize on ways to bring new people to the table to foster new investments and commitments.

Office of National AIDS Policy (ONAP) Director, Jeffrey Crowley welcomed guests and reiterated the President’s message that the Federal government cannot do this essential work alone. At this “all-hands-on-deck” moment, we must work together in new ways to make lasting progress on persistent social problems. Marta Urquilla, Senior Policy Advisor in the Office of Social Innovation and Civic Participation, explained how the Social Innovation Fund (SIF), which invested in AIDS United as part of its inaugural portfolio in 2010, reflects a new way of doing business for the federal government. The SIF invests in intermediaries to identify promising community solutions that are achieving results and support the growth, validation and scale of those innovations. A vehicle for public-private investment, the SIF leverages 3 private dollars for every 1 Federal dollar, and drives capital to communities in need, including those that are historically under-resourced.

Mark Ishaug, President and CEO of AIDS United (AU) presented AIDS United’s new “Make It Grow” campaign and gave an update from AU’s Access to Care (A2C) Initiative. He talked about the importance of the commitments and investments they’ve received from the private sector to do their work – which is leading thousands of people with HIV to have improved access to doctors and case management services. Terry McGovern, Senior Program Officer, HIV/AIDS Human Rights, Ford Foundation and Raymond Sacchetti, Senior Vice President, U.S. Virology, Bristol-Myers Squibb, both of whom have been critical partners in working with ONAP to stimulate private sector support for HIV programs, talked passionately about the importance of their commitments to this effort…providing the “why they need to do this,” as well as the importance of why they need to do this now, and describing why they feel it is a corporate responsibility to do this work. These discussions were followed by a presentation on the value of the data and national evaluation and outcomes to date by Johns Hopkins University professor and chair of the Department of Health, Behavior and Society, Dr. David Holtgrave.

Many participants recognized that this is an opportune time in the United States to support HIV programs, and there are many ways to become engaged. The bulk of the meeting time was given to a roundtable discussion where participants talked about successes and challenges, as well as effective solutions. Several participants discussed ways that they could work in new ways to support the engagement of other participants.

This meeting is one of a series focused on Public-Private Partnerships that ONAP will be hosting this fall. You can also find out about future events. If you have any questions or would like to see how you or your organization can become engaged, please contact James Albino at jalbino@who.eop.gov.

Joan Romaine is a Policy Advisor in the Office of National AIDS Policy and she is on detail from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and James Albino is the Senior Program Manager in ONAP.

Addressing the HIV Epidemic among Gay and Bisexual Men

Kevin Fenton — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 13:00:00 +0000

In 1981, our nation and its public health system were grappling with a new disease that was taking the lives of gay men across the United States. Thirty years later, HIV/AIDS continues to be a crisis among gay and bisexual men. The latest data show men who have sex with men (MSM) remain most affected in this country. Although MSM represent 2% of the population, they account for 64% of all new infections (including 3% among MSM who are injection drug users [IDUs]). CDC estimates that there were more than 30,000 new HIV infections in 2009 among MSM, including MSM-IDU. Though the numbers have gone down dramatically, approximately 7,000 MSM with an AIDS diagnoses still die each year and nearly 300,000 MSM with AIDS have died since the beginning of the epidemic.

Today, we commemorate the fourth annual National Gay Men’s HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, an observance founded by the National Association of People with AIDS to raise awareness of the HIV/AIDS epidemic among gay and bisexual men. This annual observance is one way we are focusing attention and resources on those populations at highest risk for HIV infection, including gay and bisexual men. This focus is a top priority outlined in the National HIV/AIDS Strategy (NHAS).

To reach those at risk, CDC is pursuing High Impact Prevention to support the most effective and impactful programs to aggressively reach the goals of the National Strategy. The interventions are being implemented at the federal, state, and local levels to reach the right populations at a scale large enough to make a significant difference. These approaches include expanded testing efforts to ensure more gay and bisexual men get tested at least annually, more often if at increased risk;prevention programs for people living with HIV and their partners; condom distribution; demonstration projects that focus on the most heavily affected communities; and matching HIV prevention funding for health departments and community-based organizations in those locations with the highest HIV burden.

Biomedical tools also are being investigated. Treating people living with HIV with antiretroviral therapy (ART) early in their infection can reduce the risk of transmitting the virus to others by 96%, according to a recent clinical trial. In addition, a new approach called Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) has also been shown to significantly reduce the risk of contracting HIV in gay and bisexual men, as well as heterosexuals at high risk of infection, when it is combined with existing prevention measures.

For black gay and bisexual men at highest risk for HIV, a new campaign, ‘Testing Makes Us Stronger’, previewed at the 2011 National HIV Prevention Conference, will soon be released. This campaign is the latest phase of CDC’s five-year, multi-faceted communication campaign, Act Against AIDS. Of critical importance, is reaching young gay and bisexual men of color with prevention information and access to care. According to recent estimates, HIV infections among young, black MSM (aged 13 to 29) increased by 48 percent from 2006 to 2009. Latino MSM were also impacted severely by HIV, accounting for nearly two-thirds of all new infections among Latinos in 2009. Additionally, transgender persons are at high risk with 28 percent estimated to be HIV infected. These numbers are alarming.

In response, today CDC awarded $55 million over five years to 34 community-based organizations (CBOs) in 19 states and Puerto Rico to expand community-led HIV prevention for young MSM and transgender youth of color, and their partners. Thirty-four organizations will receive, on average, an award reaching $300,000 annually, expanding previous programs with an increase of $10 million to fund additional CBOs.

Funding local organizations is one of the most powerful and effective ways to deliver HIV prevention to those at greatest risk as they are better positioned and know firsthand the community and individual socioeconomic factors, stigma, access to and availability of health care services that effect young MSM and transgender persons’ ability to protect their health and get care if/when needed. Local organizations expand our national prevention efforts in a way that others cannot, and their impact can be profound in reaching those at highest risk.

These efforts emphasize holistic and integrated approaches that are our best response to changing disease trends. They are providing new ways to help to eliminate missed opportunities and meet the needs of communities and populations at risk for HIV as well as viral hepatitis and other sexually transmitted infections.

Today, right now, we desperately need new champions and leaders from the gay community and from all communities where MSM are heavily affected to take this information and these promising breakthroughs and help to nurture a movement that not only promotes awareness of the HIV epidemic and its toll on gay and bisexual men but access to education, prevention, and care to make full use of all of the tools we have at hand currently. The gay community’s leadership once drove the nation to act against AIDS – that same energy and commitment is needed today. We cannot allow the health and the lives of gay and bisexual men to be lost to a preventable disease.

Kevin A. Fenton, MD, PhD, FFPH is Director of the National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

National HIV/AIDS and Aging Awareness Day: A Perspective from the National Institutes of Health

Paolo Miotti and Scott Proestel — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 16:31:52 +0000

On September 18, 2011, we mark the fourth observance of National HIV/AIDS and Aging Awareness Day. The remarkable success of antiretroviral therapies in prolonging the lives of HIV-infected individuals who have access to and can tolerate these drugs has led to many more HIV-infected people living into middle and old age. In 2008, an estimated 29 percent of HIV-infected adults in the U.S. were at least 50 years of age, and in 2009, individuals in that age group accounted for 17% of all new HIV diagnoses. Both of these percentages have been increasing in recent years. As the benefits of improved therapies for HIV continue to accrue, research into the complex relationship between aging and HIV becomes increasingly critical.

A major goal of HIV and aging research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is to achieve greater understanding of how premature aging of the immune system may be occurring in people living with HIV, and clarifying the fundamental mechanisms of inflammation. Understanding the complex interaction between HIV and aging will require considerable effort on multiple fronts. The NIH Institutes and Centers support a broad range of research on HIV and aging. For example, this past April, three NIH Institutes (National Institute on Aging, National Institute of Mental Health, and the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke) announced that they will fund research into the effects of HIV on the brain in aging populations taking antiretroviral therapy. Within the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) programs, research on HIV and aging is ongoing in the Women’s Interagency HIV Study (WIHS) and the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study (MACS). These long term follow-up studies of HIV infected women (WIHS) and men (MACS) have defined some of the important differences in HIV risk, pathogenesis and treatment response between the sexes. The International Epidemiologic Database to Evaluate AIDS (IeDEA) provides domestic and international information about the epidemic including pathogenesis differences between HIV infected adults who are growing older and newly infected older individuals. In addition, studies conducted by the Centers for AIDS Research (CFAR), AIDS Clinical Trials Group (ACTG), and the International Network for Strategic Initiatives in Global HIV Trials (INSIGHT) are pursuing HIV and aging-related scientific questions.

The NIH Office of AIDS Research, which has responsibility for overall planning and coordination of NIH AIDS research, has made AIDS and aging research a priority in the annual Trans-NIH Plan for HIV-Related Research, and has supported a number of initiatives to catalyze this area of science. In close collaboration with a number of NIH Institutes with research portfolios in HIV/AIDS, OAR has been exploring new ways to sponsor further research on HIV and aging. OAR has established a Working Group on HIV and Aging comprised of experts in both HIV/AIDS and geriatrics, as well as representatives from the HIV affected community to identify new scientific opportunities and priorities in this field of research.

While the NIH continues to expand research on HIV and aging, multiple other Federal agencies, foundations, and advocacy groups are also making critical contributions in this important area, as well as directly supporting the needs of older individuals living with HIV. Only by addressing these needs can we truly achieve the vision of the President’s National HIV/AIDS Strategy:

The United States will become a place where new HIV infections are rare and when they do occur, every person, regardless of age, gender, race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity or socio-economic circumstance, will have unfettered access to high quality, life-extending care, free from stigma and discrimination.

Paolo Miotti, M.D., from the Office of AIDS Research, NIH and Scott Proestel, M.D., from the Division of AIDS, NIAID, NIH

Latest Update: Registering for the NHAS Implementation Dialogues

James Albino — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 16:23:47 +0000

NHAS Implementation Dialogues

In two earlier blog posts we outlined the topic and format for a series of regional dialogues that the White House Office of National AIDS Policy will convene to focus attention on issues related to implementation of the National HIV/AIDS Strategy. These events will be a forum for Federal, state and local agency representatives, researchers, clinicians, the HIV community, and leaders from the business, foundation, faith and media sectors to share their diverse expertise, and collaborative experience.

Registering for the Events

Upon submitting your registration, you will receive a detailed confirmation letter via email.

Dialogue Topics and Locations: Updated September 12, 2011

We are planning five dialogues on distinct topics related to implementing the Strategy.

Incorporating Prevention and Care Research Into HIV Programs

Date:         Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Time:      2:00 – 4:30 pm
Location:     Alys Robinson Stephens Performing Arts Center, University of Alabama, B 1200 10th Ave. S. Birmingham, AL

Building Capacity within the HIV Workforce so that it Delivers What We Need Today and Tomorrow

Date:         Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Time:          5:30 – 8:00 pm
Location:     Swedish Medical Center, Glaser Auditorium, 747 Broadway, Seattle, WA

Sustaining the Community-Based Response to HIV

Date:       Thursday, October 20, 2011
Time:       3:00 – 5:30 pm (new time)
Location:   University of Pennsylvania, Jon M. Huntsman Hall, Dhirubhai Ambani Auditorium, 3730 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA

Fostering Collaboration Between all Public and Private Stakeholders at the State and Local Level

Date:          Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Time:         6:00pm-8:30pm
Location:   Manship Theatre at the Shaw Center for the Arts, 100 Lafayette Street, Baton Rouge, LA 70801

Maximizing Impact in Low-Prevalence Jurisdictions

Des Moines, Iowa (Early November 2011)

Additional dates, times, locations will be announced soon. Please continue to check the ONAP and AIDS.gov websites for more information.

James Albino is Senior Program Manager at the Office of National AIDS Policy

Update: National HIV/AIDS Strategy Implementation Dialogues

James Albino — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 19:35:36 +0000

Our Federal partners, as well as so many community members, people living with HIV, funders, businesses, faith leaders and other stakeholders have demonstrated encouraging support and enthusiasm for the implementation of the National HIV/AIDS Strategy. Perhaps one of the most encouraging developments has been the way the NHAS has helped steer the national HIV conversation in the direction of the Strategy’s goals. States and local jurisdictions have already begun the process of developing their own Strategy and implementation plans.

NHAS Implementation Dialogues: To sustain this effort the Office of National AIDS Policy will convene a series of regional dialogues to focus attention on issues related to implementation of the Strategy. These dialogues will serve as a forum for Federal and state agency representatives, researchers, clinicians, the HIV community, and leaders from the business, foundation, faith and media sectors to share their diverse expertise, and collaborative experience.

We are planning five dialogues on distinct topics related to implementing the Strategy. Here are the updated dialogue topics and locations:

Incorporating Prevention and Care Research Into HIV Programs

Date: Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Time: 2:00 – 4:30 pm

Location: Jemison Concert Hall at University of Alabama, Birmingham, Alys Robinson Stephens Performing Arts Center, 1200 10th Ave. S. Birmingham, AL

Building Capacity within the HIV Workforce so that it Delivers What We Need Today and Tomorrow

Date:Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Time: 5:30 – 8:00 pm

Location: Swedish Medical Center, Glaser Auditorium, 747 Broadway, Seattle, WA

Sustaining the Community-Based Response to HIV

Date: Thursday, October 20, 2011

Time: 2:30 – 5:00 pm

Location: University of Pennsylvania Campus, Building location TBD, Philadelphia, PA

Fostering Collaboration Between all Public and Private Stakeholders at the State and Local Level

Baton Rouge, Louisiana(Late October 2011)

Maximizing Impact in Low-Prevalence Jurisdictions

Des Moines, Iowa (Early November 2011)

Additional dates, times, locations will be announced soon. Please continue to check the ONAP and AIDS. gov websitesover the coming weeks for more information.

Each meeting will include a federal update on NHAS implementation and an overview of the specific topic of the dialogue followed by a panel discussion. Participants will have the opportunity to dialogue with the panel and share examples of ways they are addressing the topic as they work to implement the Strategy at the local level.

James Albino is the Senior Program Manager for the Office of National AIDS Policy.

Announcing National HIV/AIDS Strategy Implementation Dialogues

James Albino — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 18:07:27 +0000

As we shared in our blog last month, significant progress has been made in implementing the National HIV/AIDS Strategy (Strategy) in its first year. We are proud of the enthusiasm, support and contributions of our Federal partners, as well as so many community members, people living with HIV, funders, businesses, faith leaders and other stakeholders.

As these stakeholders have demonstrated, the success of the Strategy doesn’t lie in the hands of the Federal government alone. One of the most encouraging developments over the last year has been the manner in which the Strategy has served to steer a conversation about HIV in the direction of the strategic steps that individuals, communities, states, and the Nation need to take to achieve the Strategy’s goals. In various state and local jurisdictions across the country, agencies have either developed their own Strategy implementation plans, or they have started the process of doing so. Additionally, numerous HIV services and advocacy organizations have held meetings and community dialogues about what the Strategy means for their own communities. These actions are critically important and must continue.

NHAS Implementation Dialogues

To sustain and expand these actions at the state and local levels, this fall the Office of National AIDS Policy will be convening a series of regional dialogues across the country to focus attention on critical issues related to implementation of the Strategy. These dialogues will serve as a forum for Federal and state agency representatives, researchers, clinicians, and the community, as well as leaders from the business, foundation, faith and media sectors to discuss lessons learned, share their diverse expertise, and identify new ways of collaborating. These dialogues also will help build and strengthen new collaborative partnerships at the state, tribal and local levels as well as bring new people into the fight against HIV in the United States.

Dialogue Topics and Locations

We are planning five dialogues on distinct topics related to implementing the Strategy.

Incorporating Prevention and Care Research Into HIV Programs Birmingham, Alabama (Late September 2011)
Building Capacity within the HIV Workforce so that it Delivers What We Need Today and Tomorrow Seattle, Washington (Early October 2011)
Sustaining the Community-Based Response to HIV Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (Mid October)
Fostering Collaboration Between all Public and Private Stakeholders at the State and Local Level Baton Rouge, Louisiana (Late October 2011)
Maximizing Impact in Low-Prevalence Jurisdictions Des Moines, Iowa (Early November 2011)

Dates, times, locations and other details will be announced soon. Please continue to check the ONAP website over the coming weeks for more information.

Each of the 2.5-hour meetings will include a federal update on implementation of the Strategy and an overview of the specific topic of the dialogue followed by a panel discussion of that topic. Participants will have the opportunity to dialogue with the panel and share examples of ways they are addressing the topic as they work to implement the Strategy at the local level.

Although many individuals and organizations have committed to making the Strategy’s goals real, there is a need to bring in a broader range of community groups and organizations to help reinforce and re-invigorate the effort. We hope you will join us for one of the dialogues and share your expertise as we continue to engage the community in this important national endeavor.

James Albino is Senior Program Manager of the Office of National AIDS Policy

White House Commemorates World Hepatitis Day 2011

Ronald Valdiserri — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 20:43:37 +0000

Today, I was honored to participate in a special White House event to commemorate the first official World Hepatitis Day. This event was one of many held across the United States and around the world for communities to join together and focus attention on the global health threat of viral hepatitis and promote actions to confront it.

Worldwide, one in twelve persons are estimated to be living with viral hepatitis and about one million people around the world die every year because of viral hepatitis. Many people infected with viral hepatitis are unaware of their status, and as a result, may unknowingly transmit the infection to others. Without knowing their status, these patients also face the possibility of developing otherwise preventable debilitating or fatal liver disease. Last year, in recognition of this “silent epidemic,” the World Health Assembly resolved that July 28 should be designated as World Hepatitis Day, providing an opportunity to increase awareness and understanding of viral hepatitis and recognize it as a major global health problem. The theme for this first official World Hepatitis Dayis “This is hepatitis... Know it. Confront it. Hepatitis affects everyone, everywhere.”

In the United States, an estimated 3.5-5.3 million persons are living with hepatitis B or hepatitis C virus. Viral hepatitis impacts Americans of all backgrounds but affects some U.S. populations more than others. Half of all hepatitis B infected persons in the U.S. are Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders; African-Americans are twice as likely to be infected with hepatitis C when compared with the general population. To actively address these disparities and to accelerate our efforts to fight viral hepatitis, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) developed an Action Plan for the Prevention, Care and Treatment of Viral Hepatitis. The plan outlines actions to increase viral hepatitis awareness and knowledge among health care providers and communities, and steps that will improve access to quality prevention, care, and treatment services for viral hepatitis. Improved coordination across HHS, along with the active engagement of other governmental and nongovernmental partners—including informed communities—will be crucial to our success.

Today’s World Hepatitis Day Event was hosted by the White House Office of National AIDS Policy with active support from the HHS Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health. Dr. Howard K. Koh, the Assistant Secretary for Health, emphasized that marking this day in such a special way provides an opportunity to reaffirm our collective commitment to focus more attention on this pressing public health issue. Dr. Koh was among the dignitaries who provided opening remarks at the event and read a World Hepatitis Day proclamation on behalf of President Obama. I was pleased to then hear from several members of Congress, including Representatives Bill Cassidy, Judy Chu, Michael Honda, Hank Johnson, and Barbara Lee, who have been leaders in raising hepatitis awareness. I moderated a panel that highlighted opportunities across the federal government to implement the HHS Action Plan for Viral Hepatitis. This discussion was followed by a session led by health care providers and patients living with viral hepatitis who shared their individual experiences with fighting viral hepatitis. Mr. Jeffrey Crowley, Director of the White House Office of National AIDS Policy, provided a closing statement to the audience, which included government leaders, policy makers, community advocates, patients, and health professionals.

To learn more about World Hepatitis Day or about viral hepatitis visit the CDC’s website. Also, read the Presidential Proclamation–World Hepatitis Day.

Ronald Valdiserri, M.D., M.P.H. is the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Health, Infectious Diseases, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

The National HIV/AIDS Strategy at One Year

Jeffrey Crowley — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 15:09:31 +0000

It’s been one year since we launched the first comprehensive National HIV/AIDS Strategy and today we are releasing an implementation update to keep you up to speed on the latest work. We plan to release a more comprehensive progress report after the conclusion of the calendar year, but as we mark this critical first year, we wanted to provide some reflections on key first-year achievements.

The Strategy details President Obama’s three goals: 1) reduce the number of new HIV infections, 2) increase access to care and improve health outcomes for people living with HIV, and 3) reduce HIV-related health disparities. Our mission is for the United States to become a place where new HIV infections are rare and when they do occur, every person, regardless of age, gender, race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity or socio-economic circumstance, will have unfettered access to high quality, life-extending care, free from stigma and discrimination. As you will see from the report, agencies throughout government are stepping up to the plate and stakeholders from all sectors are taking action.

President Barack Obama holds meeting on AIDS policy with members of the Domestic Policy Council in the Oval Office, July 12, 2011. Participating in the briefing with the President are, from left: Greg Millett, Senior Scientist and HHS/CDC Liaison to the Office of National AIDS Policy; Domestic Policy Council Director Melody Barnes; Jeffrey Crowley; Director of the Office of National AIDS Policy; and Senior Advisor Valerie Jarrett. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

Ultimately, for the Strategy to be truly successful, we need you. The Strategy isn’t about what government can do alone. We know that businesses, the faith community, and all sectors have a role to play. The following video above everyday leaders implementing the strategy in their own communities. We hope that you can use this to engage more people in our collective efforts to implement the Strategy and energize key partners to continue their efforts. Go to AIDS.gov to receive more information and take action.

We thank everyone that has worked with us so far, and we look forward to new and productive collaborations over the coming year.

Download the National HIV/AIDS Strategy Implementation Update.

Jeffrey Crowley is the Director of the Office of National AIDS Strategy.

National HIV Testing Day 2011

Thomas R. Frieden — Mon, 27 Jun 2011 16:29:25 +0000

Note: Today President Obama issued a statement on National HIV Testing Day

Thirty years ago, at the beginning of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, there was no test for HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. For many, there was only the long and worrisome wait for the signs of infection. Once those signs appeared, no treatment for the virus was available. I personally cared for many, many patients in this era, and I am thankful that those days are over. Today, HIV testing is accurate, widely available, and often free—and treatment can help people living with HIV enjoy long, healthy lives, especially when they get diagnosed early.

The good news is that more people are being tested for HIV than ever before. It is estimated that almost 83 million American adults between 18 and 64 have been tested for HIV, as of 2009. That’s an increase of more than 11 million from 2006 when the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention(CDC) recommended that HIV testing become a routine part of medical care for adults and adolescents.

However, more than half of American adults still have never taken an HIV test. That’s why we need to spread that message that HIV testing saves lives and why today, June 27th, National HIV Testing Day, is an important reminder for us to reach as many people as possible with this life-saving information. Founded by the National Association of People with AIDS, National HIV Testing Day (NHTD) focuses on promoting HIV testing and early diagnosis of HIV across the United States. The day’s theme “Take the Test. Take Control.” emphasizes that knowing one’s HIV status – whether it’s positive or negative – is empowering.

Research shows that once people get tested, those who are HIV positive take steps to protect their partners from HIV. Testing HIV negative is also beneficial - as it empowers individuals to take stock of – and modify – risky sexual behaviors so that they can remain HIV negative.

If you are HIV positive – what you don’t know CAN hurt you – and others. A third of those with HIV are tested very late and develop AIDS within a year of their HIV diagnosis, which may be too late to utilize the full benefits of treatment. Approximately 17,000 Americans with AIDS still die each year. Too many new HIV infections in the United States occur because people who don’t know they are HIV infected transmit the virus to others.

HIV testing is a significant part of the National HIV/AIDS Strategy(NHAS), the nation's first-ever comprehensive coordinated HIV/AIDS plan. This plan focuses on reducing infections, increasing access to care and improving health outcomes, and reducing HIV-related health disparities.

The federal government continues to make investments to provide HIV testing to those at risk for HIV. CDC initiated the Expanded Testing Initiative in October 2007. Findings from the Initiative were published last week in CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. The $111 million effort provided funding for health departments in 25 of the nation’s hardest-hit areas. As a result of these efforts, CDC-supported health departments were able to offer 2.8 million HIV tests in just three years.

As a result of the Expanded Testing Initiative, more than 18,000 Americans living with HIV learned their HIV status for the first time. Approximately three-quarters of the individuals who were newly diagnosed were successfully linked to HIV care, of those for whom follow up data were available. Increasing HIV testing is among our country’s top health priorities as testing not only saves lives, it saves resources. Each HIV infection averted saves an estimated $367,000 (2009 dollars) in lifetime medical costs.

On this 17th annual National HIV Testing Day, we thank the many, many individuals, organizations, and agencies who are taking action to make sure everyone knows that HIV testing is an important step in stopping HIV infections and creating health for our friends, family, colleagues, and neighbors.

To locate an HIV testing site near you, text your Zip Code to “KNOWIT” (566948), visit www.HIVtest.org, or call 800-CDC-INFO (800-232-4636). To find local HIV resources, including testing, housing, and substance abuse treatment, family planning, and mental health services, visit the HIV/AIDS Prevention and Services Provider Locator tool.

Thomas R. Frieden, MD, MPH is the Director at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Inspiration for a Future Free of HIV

Ambassador Eric Goosby — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 17:42:28 +0000

This week, First Lady Michelle Obama is visiting South Africa and Botswana, focusing on youth leadership, education, health and wellness. Today, Mrs. Obama met with organizations dedicated to combating HIV/AIDS in South Africa, including groups that use soccer to convene and educate children about HIV/AIDS. Tomorrow, she will meet with a Teen Club in Botswana that teaches teens about leadership and how to educate others about HIV.

During her meetings with African youth, Mrs. Obama is highlighting the importance of youth leadership in fighting HIV/AIDS. These young men and women grew up watching family members and friends taken by this devastating virus. But today they know there is hope. They have seen dramatic change in recent years – thanks to strong leadership from their Government with support from the American people – where people who were once dying are now living. These youth can be the generation that ends HIV/AIDS.

The United States is proud to be supporting South Africa, Botswana and countries around the world in leading their fight against HIV/AIDS. In South Africa, there are more than one million people on life-saving HIV treatment today, a far cry from the 50,000 people on treatment in all of sub-Saharan Africa in 2003. And Botswana is now closing in on the goal of eliminating mother-to-child HIV transmission.

These successes are being replicated in countries around the world thanks to support from the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). Globally, the United States is supporting more than 3.2 million people on life-saving treatment. In 2010, PEPFAR directly supported 11 million people on care, including 3.8 million orphans and vulnerable children. And PEPFAR-supported programs reached over 600,000 mothers with services to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV, leading to more than 114,000 infants being born HIV-free in 2010 alone. For millions of youth around the world, these numbers represent parents, friends and community leaders who are now living with HIV instead of dying from it. As we focus on results, America is also supporting countries so they can lead their fight in the future and continue to save even more lives.

The Obama Administration is more committed than ever to build on the successes of the last decadeand to continue to work with other governments and partners as we all work toward our shared goal of a world without HIV/AIDS. And we hope the millions of lives saved to date will inspire youth in Africa and around the world to continue their fight for an HIV-free future.

Ambassador Eric Goosby is the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator at the U.S. Department of State.

Raising HIV/AIDS Awareness in the Caribbean Community

Greg Millett — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 13:00:00 +0000

Today, Wednesday, June 8, 2010 is the sixth annual observance of Caribbean-American HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. Caribbean-American HIV/AIDS Awareness Day is designed to raise awareness of HIV/AIDS in Caribbean communities in the United States and its territories. Raising awareness is a necessity because Caribbean communities are at elevated risk for HIV infection.

There are 30 countries in the Caribbean stemming from the 3 most populous (Cuba, Dominican Republic, and Haiti) to the least populous (Saint Barts, Saint Eustatius, and Saba). After sub-Saharan Africa, the Caribbean has the second highest HIV prevalence in the world. HIV prevalence among adults in the Caribbean was approximately 1.1% between 2001 and 2007, although rates vary among countries. Cuba has a low HIV prevalence (0.1%) among adults while the Bahamas has the highest HIV adult prevalence in the region (3.1%). According to CDC, except for sub-Saharan Africa, the Caribbean is the only region where the proportion of women and girls living with HIV (53%) is higher than the proportion of men and boys. Unprotected heterosexual sex is the main HIV transmission mode in the Caribbean. However, transmission categories differ by country. Injection drug users are a primary driver of the HIV epidemic in Puerto Rico, whereas gay and bisexual men and heterosexuals are primarily affected in Cuba and the Dominican Republic (respectively).

CDC recently published surveillance data of HIV among blacks in the United States who are of Caribbean origin. Of an estimated 100,013 black adults and adolescents diagnosed with HIV infection from 2001 to 2007, 11.7% were foreign-born, with most from the Caribbean (54.1%) and Africa (41.5%). Most Caribbean foreign born blacks with HIV in the US are from Haiti (66.9%), 18.2% from Jamaica, 6.3% from Trinidad and Tobago, 3.3% from the Bahamas, 1.4% from Barbados, and 3.8% from other areas of the Caribbean. Males account for the majority (56.6%) of HIV diagnoses among black people born in the Caribbean. Females account for 57.4% of diagnoses among HIV-positive black Americans born in Africa.

Additional information about HIV in the Caribbean is available at UNAIDS, World Health Organization and Pan American Health Organization. Additional information of HIV among Caribbean born individuals in the United States is available on the Centers for Disease Control website. In addition, links to other informational resources are available at the Florida/ Caribbean AIDS Education and Training Center.

Greg Millett is a Senior Scientist and HHS/CDC Liaison to the Office of National AIDS Policy

Continuing Steps to Implement the National HIV/AIDS Strategy as the Pandemic Turns 30

Jeffrey S. Crowley — Tue, 07 Jun 2011 19:22:29 +0000

As we reflect on the thirtieth year of the HIV pandemic, our work continues. I wanted to share with you two developments at the White House as we mark this somber, but important milestone.

HHS Announces New Steps to Implement the National HIV/AIDS Strategy

Yesterday, I participated in a call with Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and key leaders in her Department who announced new actions to support the implementation of the National HIV/AIDS Strategy.

Mary Wakefield, PhD, RN, Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)discussed the Administration’s continued commitment to supporting States in responding to the challenge of state waiting lists in the AIDS Drug Assistance Program (ADAP). Funding for ADAP has enjoyed broad bipartisan support. Even in a tough budget climate and at a time when other critical health programs received cuts, the Administration fought for and achieved a $50 million increase in funding for ADAP in FY 2011 compared to the enacted level for FY 2010. This year, the Federal government alone will invest $885 million in the ADAP program. Administrator Wakefield announced that the increased funding will allow a temporary program established last summer with $25 million in emergency funds to continue and HRSA will allocate the remaining increase through both the ADAP formula program and through a targeted, competitive grant process to assist States with waiting lists or other cost containment measures that could impede access to critical medications. While there are challenges in ensuring that individuals have access to life saving medications, HRSA is working closely with states and encouraging pharmaceutical companies to help bridge the gap in this program until state economic conditions improve and the Affordable Care Act alleviates some of the pressure on this program.

Ms. Cindy Mann, Deputy Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and Director of the Center for Medicaid, CHIP, and Survey and Certificationdiscussed a State Medicaid Director (SMD) letter, issued yesterday, that informs States of various opportunities in Medicaid to improve care coordination and care delivery for people living with HIV, as well as opportunities to use Section 1115 HIV demonstration waivers to expand access to Medicaid for people living with HIV. To facilitate States considering a Section 1115 demonstration waiver, CMS also issued a template and stated that they will work with States to develop streamlined and flexible approaches to meeting legal and policy requirements for these waivers. The commitment to issue this waiver guidance was made in the Federal Implementation Plan for the National HIV/AIDS Strategy and in some states, could provide a mechanism for relieving pressure on ADAP while also providing more coordinated and high-quality care.

A blog post by CMS Administrator Don Berwick can be found HERE. The SMD issued by CMS can be found HERE.

Dr. Tom Frieden, Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)described CDC’s vision for high-impact HIV prevention. He announced that even in a very difficult budget environment, CDC was increasing its investment in HIV prevention services by $31 million in FY 2011. He also described some of the targeted new prevention investments CDC is making as it realigns its entire HIV prevention portfolio to have a bigger impact. He spoke of the need, articulated in the National HIV/AIDS Strategy, to focus on the geographic, demographic, and programmatic characteristics of the HIV epidemic. In particular, he highlighted the need to better address gay and bisexual men of all races and ethnicities (but especially gay and bisexual men of color), because they reflect the majority of new infections and the only group in the US where infection rates are rising. He discussed the Enhanced Comprehensive HIV Prevention Planning (ECHPP) initiative in the twelve cities and surrounding metropolitan areas that account for nearly half (44%) of the HIV cases in the United States. He described this as a platform for making improvements in planning that will be applied across CDC’s HIV prevention programs. He discussed CDC’s investments in helping state and local jurisdictions track and report CD4 and viral load measurements in order to track community viral load. Research studies have demonstrated that when a community is able to lower the mean viral load across all people living with HIV in that community that this leads to a lowering in HIV incidence. Therefore, tracking community viral load is an important tool for reducing the number of new infections. CDC is doing important work to support states and localities in building their capacity to track community viral load.

Each of these agencies announced significant new initiatives yesterday that move us forward in implementing the National HIV/AIDS Strategy. Their impact, however, is greatest when viewed together. We have a stronger evidence base than ever before and a clearer vision of how to support individuals and communities in lowering their risk of becoming infected with HIV, helping individuals living with HIV to learn their status, and how to bolster the programs that support individuals with HIV in accessing the care and services they need (including access to antiretroviral therapy). Our work continues, but we are making definite forward progress.

Champions of Change

Champions of Change is a weekly White House initiative to highlight Americans who are making an impact in their communities and helping our country rise to meet the many challenges of the 21st century. Last week, we invited a diverse group of people living with HIV to join me; Health and Human Services Assistant Secretary for Health, Dr. Howard Koh; Brian Bond, Deputy Director of Public Engagement and former ONAP staffer and Senior Scientist at CDC, Greg Millett - both people living with HIV; as well as Allison Nichol and David Knight of the Civil Rights Division at the Department of Justice and David Vos, Director of the Office of HIV/AIDS Housing at the Department of Housing and Urban Development for a round table to discuss their experiences as people living with HIV.

For more than two years we’ve been working in close partnership with many members of the HIV community and as we enter our fourth decade fighting HIV/AIDS, we believed it was important to again hear from the collective wisdom of people living with HIV in order to assess our progress and make plans for concerted efforts going forward. Everyone has something to contribute toward ending this pandemic. That’s why we have been working with people living with HIV every step of the way. We felt it was important to meet with HIV positive leaders and hear about the lived experiences of people who may be still facing stigma in their own communities. Many who may still struggle to gain access to services, yet who are working everyday to support their communities as they respond to HIV. The discussion was very powerful and it generated a lot of good ideas.

Check out this introductory post from Brian Bond HERE and learn about these incredible individuals HERE. And check back, as this page will be updated throughout the week with posts by each of these individuals.

Jeffrey S. Crowley is the Director of the Office of National AIDS Policy

What You Missed: Open for Questions 30 Years of AIDS

Thu, 02 Jun 2011 17:39:12 +0000

Yesterday, Surgeon General Dr. Regina Benjamin, Director of the White House Office of National AIDS Policy Jeffrey Crowley and Director of the Division of AIDS at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, NIH, Dr. Carl Dieffenbach came to the White House for a special live chat on 30^th anniversary of the AIDS epidemic. Check out the video of the chat below.

For events, timelines and more information about the 30^th anniversary of AIDS visit AIDS.gov. And to find out more information about HIV testing and treatment, as well a mental health, substance abuse, family planning and housing services, check out the HIV/AIDS Prevention and Services locator.

To view this content, please download the Adobe Flash Player

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Open for Questions: 30 Years of AIDS

Tue, 31 May 2011 13:16:24 +0000

On Wednesday June 1, 2011 at 3 p.m. EDT, Surgeon General Dr. Regina Benjamin, Director of the White House Office of National AIDS Policy Jeffrey Crowley and Director of the Division of AIDS at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, NIH, Dr. Carl Dieffenbach will be hosting a special live discussion on the 30^th anniversary of the AIDS epidemic. Submit your questions in advance and tune in to WhiteHouse.gov/live to watch the discussion.

What: Open for Question: 30 Years of AIDS
When: June 1 at 3 p.m. EDT
Who: Surgeon General Dr. Regina Benjamin, Director of the White House Office of National AIDS Policy Jeffrey Crowley and Director of the Division of AIDS at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, NIH Dr. Carl Dieffenbach
Where: Submit questions in advance, watch live at WhiteHouse.gov/live and submit live questions during the discussion on Facebook.

My Visit to Swaziland: The Country with the World’s Highest HIV Prevalence Rate

Jeffrey S. Crowley — Thu, 26 May 2011 21:08:48 +0000

Last week, I wrote about my attendance at the PEPFAR annual meeting in South Africa, the country that has more people living with HIV (over 5 million) than any other country in the world. After this meeting, I visited the neighboring country of Swaziland, which has the unwelcome distinction of having the highest HIV and TB prevalence rates in the world.

This part of my trip had special personal significance for me. Twenty-one years ago, I had the privilege of serving as a United States Peace Corps volunteer in Swaziland, where I worked as a high school science teacher. This trip really was part homecoming as Swaziland remains a part of me, and it gave me a chance to reconnect with many friends whom I haven’t seen in more than a decade. But, I also spent several days with the PEPFAR team in the country – especially the Peace Corps - learning about the broad range of ways that the United States government is extending a hand of friendship and is partnering with Swaziland to respond to their HIV epidemic.

The United States Ambassador to Swaziland, the Honorable Earl Irving, was an incredible host. I attended a large reception at the Ambassador’s residence with the Honorable Minister of Health, Benedict Xaba and other Swazi leaders working on HIV, as well as representatives from PEPFAR, Peace Corps, CDC, USAID, DoD, and private American institutions, including Columbia University’s International Center for AIDS Care and Treatment Programs (ICAP) project. Another evening, the Ambassador hosted a dinner with leaders from the Swazi Cabinet, the Ministry of Health and the national AIDS commission. I participated in a handover ceremony where the Ambassador ceremoniously transferred nine vehicles from PEPFAR to the government of Swaziland that will support their HIV work in the field. Through this event I also had the opportunity to meet His Excellency the Right Honorable Prime Minister of Swaziland.

A major focus of PEPFAR’s work is to assist the Swazi government’s plan to scale up adult male circumcision. This lowers the risk that men will acquire HIV infection and research models indicate that if the country can get up to 80% of its adult men circumcised, they could observe a substantial decline in HIV transmission. I visited one of several mobile sites that enabled Swaziland and PEPFAR to quickly expand access to circumcision. I visited a rural clinic where PEPFAR is working to train and support nurses so that they can initiate people on antiretroviral therapy, a step that will help expand access to therapy in the country. I also had the opportunity to meet with many current Peace Corps volunteers, most of whom are assigned to HIV prevention and education and are doing great work in very rural communities to support community level efforts to educate about HIV, promote HIV testing and access to care, and support people living with HIV. In fact, it was with a Peace Corps volunteer that I met a most impressive woman who is an outspoken peer educator and advocate. Despite very strong stigma facing people living with HIV, everyone in her community knows her status and she is doing important work to support other people living with HIV and bring people into care.

One of the truisms I see as I reflect on the work on the ground in Swaziland is how similar are the challenges in the United States. We have made enormous progress in responding to the epidemic at home, but we still struggle with access to prevention and care services, we must still do more to decrease stigma and discrimination, and as in Swaziland, the engagement and leadership of people living with HIV is a core ingredient of a successful response.

Despite the overwhelming scope of the epidemic in Swaziland, I left feeling encouraged. There is strong leadership by senior government officials; the Ministry of Health estimates the country has achieved roughly 70% coverage on antiretroviral therapy for people for whom this is clinically indicated—which is very respectable progress. I also met a broad range of skilled and committed Americans with critical expertise who are doing really important work to foster partnerships with Swazis and collaborate on a range of prevention and care issues. I also left with a memory of going back to Nsongweni High School where I was a science teacher so many years ago. They welcomed me back in grand style with a program of traditional dancers and a choir and I was given an opportunity to address the students and meet with the headmistress (my former colleague) and the teachers. I love that community and that tiny country on the other side of the world, and I am proud that the United States is actively engaged in their fight against HIV/AIDS.

Jeffrey S. Crowley is the Director of the Office of National AIDS Policy

National Asian and Pacific Islander HIV/AIDS Awareness Day

Dr. Howard K. Koh — Thu, 19 May 2011 13:00:00 +0000

“Saving face can't make you safe. Talk about HIV – for me, for you, for everyone.”

That’s the motto for National Asian and Pacific Islander HIV/AIDS Awareness Day on May 19.

According to the Banyan Tree Project, which sponsors this Awareness Day on behalf of a wide cross-section of organizations serving Asians and Pacific Islanders:

"Saving face" is a common cultural concept in A&PI communities, where individuals seek to protect the family from perceived public shame or disgrace. In practice, "saving face" contributes to silence about sex, HIV, and safe sex practices. Saving face and stigma also lead to higher rates of HIV infection and a lack of knowledge about one's HIV status.

As an Asian-American physician who has cared for patients with HIV/AIDS, I’ve seen the stigma of HIV firsthand. It’s time to put an end to it.

Last May, I had the honor of blogging about the importance of observing National Asian and Pacific Islander HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. I want to reiterate some important points I made then— and also highlight that since then, the White House has released the National HIV/AIDS Strategy (NHAS), a roadmap for reducing the number of new HIV infections, increasing access to care and improving health outcomes for people living with HIV, and reducing HIV-related health disparities.

Current data suggest that Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) represent approximately one percent of diagnoses of HIV infection nationally—but the rate of HIV diagnoses among certain AAPI populations is higher than some other groups. In 2009 (the latest year for which we have data), the estimated rate of diagnoses of HIV infection among Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander men per 100,000 population (41.2) was nearly three times that of White men (14.8).

There were relatively few diagnoses of HIV infection among Asian and Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander women in 2009; however, the rates for these groups (3.4 and 13.3, respectively) were higher than the rate for White (2.4) women. The number of AAPIs diagnosed with HIV or AIDS may be larger, since we have reason to believe HIV is underreported among this group.

As part of our commitment to the NHAS, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is working to improve our data collection. We want to understand the full impact of HIV/AIDS on all populations, including AAPIs, because better information helps us provide better prevention, testing, and treatment options. Those options will move this country closer to ending the HIV/AIDS epidemic—for the AAPI community and everyone else too.

On June 5, we will mark 30 years since the first published reports of AIDS. One of the best ways we can commemorate that date is to talk about HIV within our families, among our friends, and in our communities. We can reaffirm our commitment to ending the suffering through HIV awareness, testing, treatment, and care.

I encourage you to visit the Banyan Tree Project’s website to find information about events, posters, and other resources in your community for National Asian and Pacific Islander HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. “Saving face” can’t make us safe—but awareness and action can. Please join us!

To find an HIV testing site or other HIV services near you, visit http://locator.AIDS.gov to access the HIV Prevention and Services Provider Locator. By entering your address or ZIP code, you can find HIV testing, mental health, substance abuse, housing, health care, and family planning resources near you.

Howard K. Koh M.D., M.P.H., is Assistant Secretary for Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services