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 the thursday morning eNEWS   archives 

Jump to TODAY'S HIV NEWS at AEGIS

The Thursday Morning eNEWS

State Department lifts ban on hiring HIV-positive diplomats
by Bob Roehr Originally printed 02/21/2008 (Issue 1608 - Between The Lines News)
The U.S. Department of State has changed its policy prohibiting the hiring of persons who are HIV-positive. The decision ends a five-year legal challenge to that policy, which was headed for arguments in a federal courtroom later this month. The Feb. 15 announcement came while President George W. Bush was flying to Africa on a tour that would highlight the U.S. response to AIDS on that continent. The decision lifts the blanket ban on hiring persons who are HIV positive to serve as diplomats. The State Department will now hire and assign current and future employees worldwide on a case-by-case basis based on their overall health status. The lawsuit was brought by Lorenzo Taylor, now 51, a graduate of the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service. He is fluent in three languages and had passed all of the hurdles to join the State Department when, in 2001, a medical review dashed his plans to become a diplomat. State Department regulations at the time said that new employees must be available for worldwide service and that being HIV positive was an automatic exclusion. However, current employees who sero-converted were allowed to continue to work so long as their health allowed. Taylor, with the assistance of the Lambda Legal Defense Fund, sought reasonable accommodations from the department. They argued that the introduction of highly active anti-retroviral therapy (HAART) had changed the medical situation and the employment policy should change to reflect that. LAMBDA tried administrative channels but those proved futile and they filed suit in federal court in 2002, charging a violation of the Rehabilitation Act. The Department threw up every procedural challenge possible to avoid having to face the substance of the issue, but it lost in court at every turn. It finally threw in the towel as the trial date approached and changed its medical guidelines. "We are extremely pleased with this change," said Bebe J. Anderson, HIV Project Director at Lambda Legal. "The new guidelines mean that candidates for Foreign Service posts who have HIV will now be assessed on a case-by-case basis, as the law requires. At long last, the State Department is taking down its sign that read 'People with HIV need not apply.'" Taylor agreed to a settlement of his lawsuit which was not conditional upon his employment. He had moved to San Francisco the first of this year in a new position within his old agency at the Department of Health and Human Services. In personal correspondence he said, "I'm happy that State has finally done the right thing, but I only wish that bringing them to this point had not taken so long and so much effort. With a little courage, this could have been resolved years ago instead of on the eve of the trial." "My joy is tempered by my sadness for all the foreign service officer candidates through the years whose talents and service have been overlooked because of their HIV status and who were also victims of this archaic policy."

Illinois Lottery Launches Game To Fund HIV/AIDS Awareness, Prevention
Blagojevich release, 2/11
The Illinois Lottery on Friday launched a game that will raise money for HIV/AIDS prevention and education programs in the state, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports. The game, called Red Ribbon Cash, will sell two-dollar tickets and have four top prizes of $20,000.A spokesperson for the Illinois Department of Revenue on Tuesday said the lottery hopes ticket sales will raise $3 million annually, which is the amount a ticket benefiting breast cancer research raised in 2006. According to the Post-Dispatch, all the proceeds will go to support HIV/AIDS programs in the state. Grants will be distributed by the Illinois Department of Public Health. It is not known when enough money will be generated to start awarding grants, the Post-Dispatch reports Angele Barnes -- executive director of Bethany Place, a not-for-profit HIV/AIDS education and treatment facility in Belleville, Ill. -- said the group will apply for a grant when the funds become available. Barnes said the money likely will go toward education materials and prevention programs, such as no-cost HIV tests. According to the Post-Dispatch, Illinois ranks sixth among states with the number of AIDS cases recorded since 1981. Last year, 1,906 HIV cases and 814 AIDS cases were reported in the state, the Post-Dispatch reports (Haughney, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 2/20). "With so many Illinoisans afflicted with this terrible disease, we must continue to create opportunities that raise awareness and to fund prevention and treatment options," Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) said, adding, "The dollars raised from this ticket will provide grants for HIV/AIDS prevention and education in communities across the state, especially in the communities that have been hardest hit with the disease." According to a Blagojevich release, all grants funded by the program will be reviewed and approved by a special advisory board called the Quality of Life Board.

Colin Higgins Foundation’s 2008 Youth Courage Awards
The Colin Higgins Foundation is requesting nominations for its annual Youth Courage Awards. Each year the Colin Higgins Foundation salutes LGBTQ individuals who demonstrate courage in the face of adversity and discrimination based on gender and/or sexual orientation. Many LGBTQ Youth grow up in family, school and community environments that threaten their well being. They find themselves ostracized, marginalized, in psychological or even physical danger. Colin Higgins Foundation Youth Courage Award winners rise above such circumstances to inspire others by taking action, rallying support, and working to transform the systems and institutions that impact their lives.
This year the Foundation will be awarding $10,000 grants to:
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Two-Spirit, Queer and Questioning youth (through age 21) who have bravely stood up to hostility and intolerance based on their gender and/or sexual orientation and triumphed over bigotry through working for LGBTQ rights and social justice. Colin Higgins Foundation Youth Courage Award winners rise above adversity to inspire others by taking action, rallying support, and working to transform the systems and institutions that impact their lives.
In 2008, the honorees will receive a $10,000 grant which will be presented at the Trevor Project Benefit Gala in June: http://www.thetrevorproject.org The deadline for all nominations is 9am PST, Monday, March 3rd 2008. Late nominations will not be accepted. The Foundation encourages all nominations to be made via the online submission tool, which can be found at http://www.colinhiggins.org/courageawards/nomin_mat.cfm or www.colinhiggins.org.
Coming Events
(please send your upcoming events to info@friendsalliance.org)
Feb 12- Marygrove/IHM exhibit on AIDS orphans
Mar 12 Marygrove and IHMs bring exhibit on AIDS orphans A hands-on, interactive exhibit featuring AIDS orphans from around the world will be displayed at Marygrove College in the 4th floor Art Gallery. The exhibit, "The Children Left Behind," which will open on Feb. 13 and will run through March 14, captures life through the eyes of orphans living in many cultures. From cultures as diverse as Uganda, India, Cambodia, Guatemala, South Africa and the United States, visitors see the children's lives through their own creative voices. The 1,200 square-foot display invites visitors to "travel" to each country, immersing themselves in the stories of these children, and to witness how different life can be when people, communities and organizations work together. Kiosks and colorful life-size stations of each country, presented through photographs, video games, artifacts, a short documentary and original drawings by the children, evoke the hope and inspiration created by the work of Catholic Relief Services (CRS), an international relief and development organization that oversees 80 HIV/AIDS projects in 30 countries. CRS commissioned the traveling exhibit. Archbiship Desmond Tutu, a supporter of "The Children Left Behind," says the exhibit "will open your eyes and touch your hearts because these are stories of children who are beating incredible odds." The exhibit, which opens during the middle of Black History Month, may help bring AIDS awareness to Michigan, where a recent report by the Michigan AIDS Fund showed the state is performing poorly at curbing the infection rate in young African Americans. Of the approximate 17,000 Michigan residents living with AIDS, 67 percent of new infections are coming from southeast Michigan.
Exhibit Schedule February 13 - March 13, The Gallery at Marygrove College, 8425 W McNichols, 4th floor, Detroit, MI 48221, Monday - Friday, 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., Saturday, 1:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. (or by appointment, please call 313-927-1538 A public reception for the exhibit will be held in the gallery from 6-8:30 on Friday, Feb. 29. The exhibit is sponsored by Marygrove College and the IHM Sisters. Several IHM Sisters are active in AIDS ministries in Africa and the United States. www.thechildrenleftbehind.org
Mar 8 Michigan Lesbian and Gay Comedyfest
A swashbuckling good time benefiting Triangle Foundation
Saturday, March 8 with 2 shows at 6PM and 8PM for complete information, go to www.comedyfest.org
Mar 14-16 InterPride is an association of Pride Organizations that helps to share ideas on pride events.
Pride St. Louis is proud to host this year's InterPride Regions 3 & 4 Joint Conference March 14-16, 2008 in St. Louis, Missouri. This Conference once again will be a great opportunity for the Pride Leaders of both small and large prides to share and learn at workshops, network at social receptions, and form an everlasting bond in Small Group Discussions. Why reinvent the wheel, come to an InterPride Conference, and find out what works and what doesn't. Share your stories and experiences while others do the same with you, get best practices to implement at your local pride event. Also, get energized by spending a fun filled weekend with your Pride Coordinator peers from around the country! There will even be a special group challenge for those wanting to demonstrate their proven talents. I encourage you to check out the website and see what awaits you at this year's conference. ALSO, PASS THIS EMAIL ONTO ANY ONE WHO YOU KNOW WHO WORKS ON PRIDES OR MAY BE INTERESTED. Plus check out our Partners Party Package. This allows you to bring your friends and loved ones to join us in the night social activities while touring the beautiful sites of St. Louis with a wild and wacky tour guide. Call or email me with any questions you may have. We look forward to seeing you March 14-16, 2008! Also feel free to come into town a night early and kick off the conference right with the pre-conference reception!
TO REGISTER: visit www.pridestl.org *registration is $150 per delegate but group rates are also available based on organizations size. Just mention Pride St. Louis while making your room reservations at the Millennium Hotel.
Apr 21-23 The Grant Institute's Grants 101: Professional Grant Proposal Writing Workshop will be held in Detroit, Michigan, April 21 - 23, 2008. Interested development professionals, researchers, faculty, and graduate students should register as soon as possible, as demand means that seats will fill up quickly. For complete information go to www.thegrantinstitute.com
May 30-1 Michigan’s Persons Living with HIV/AIDS Conference
This years themed conference “Break the Silence, Coming Alive” will be held at the Hotel Bay Valley Resort and Conference Center in Bay City. Limited scholarships must be received by February 29, 2008. For questions contact Debbie Cornell at cornellde@michigan.gov or call 517-241-5919
June 11-14 2008 HIV Prevention Leadership Summit will be held in Detroit at the Marriott Hotel Renaissance Center.

Scholarship Applications Now Available
The 2008 HIV Prevention Leadership Summit (HPLS) will be held in Detroit, June 11th – 14th, 2008. The HPLS Host Committee is delighted to have this type of national attention drawn upon our gracious city. The Summit will bring together participants from around the country representing community based organizations, community planning leaders and health departments to network and learn from each other about HIV prevention efforts including community planning, effective interventions, capacity building and program integration. The HPLS Host Committee has a limited number of scholarships for the conference registration only, for this entire event. Hotel accommodations are not included; successful applicants will need to make their own hotel arrangements. The Host Committee is asking applicants for assistance in ensuring a seamless review of your application. You must fill out your application fully, as incomplete applications will not be reviewed. The Committee will make its final decision by April 15, 2008 and all applicants will be notified of the Committee’s decision no later than May 1, 2008. Priority will be given to younger applicants (between the ages of 13 and 24), older applicants (above age 50) and persons living with HIV/AIDS. Employees of agencies funded for HIV services and conference volunteers are not eligible for scholarships. Send your completed application to the address located on the scholarship application by March 14, 2008.

Positive Dialog Group Seeking Board Members
We, PDG (Positive Dialog Group, Inc.), are seeking NEW Board members that possess professional skills in clerical, medical (clinical, RN, MD, PhD), legal (AIDS law & or general Law) and bookkeeping. Also community activist, advocacy (persons affected by HIV/AIDS) and consumers PLWHA 33%. If you know of some persons that would be interested please have them submit/email either a resume or letter of interest to our board ThePOZDGroup@yahoogroups.com or mail to PDG 527 McDougall St. Detroit, MI 48207. We welcome all capacity building support.
In the News
Needle-Exchange Pilot Program in New Jersey Is 'Struggling' To Enroll IDUs, AP/Long Island Newsday Reports
AP/Long Island Newsday, 2/23
New Jersey's pilot needle-exchange program is "struggling" to enroll injection drug users in part because of a lack of funding, the AP/Long Island Newsday reports (Mulvihill, AP/Long Island Newsday, 2/23). The pilot programs were recently launched in Camden and Paterson, N.J. Another program has been in effect in Atlantic City since November 2007, and a program in Newark is also scheduled to start, according to Roseanne Scotti, director of the Drug Policy Alliance of New Jersey.The New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services in August 2007 approved the establishment of three-year needle-exchange programs in the four cities. Gov. Jon Corzine (D) in December 2006 signed into law a bill that allows six cities to establish needle-exchange programs and provides $10 million to drug treatment programs in the state. The state health commissioner must report to the governor and state Legislature on whether the needle-exchange programs are effective. In addition, people who participate in and run the programs are required to carry identification cards that protect them from being arrested for possessing drug paraphernalia. No state funding will be allocated to the cities for operating needle-exchange programs. To be eligible for a program, a city must have at least 300 HIV/AIDS cases attributed to injection drug use per 100,000 residents and at least 350 confirmed HIV/AIDS cases overall. Each program will be required to report data on the number of people participating in the programs and referred to drug treatment, the status of their treatment and the number of syringes exchanged. According to state Health Commissioner Fred Jacobs, the data will be used to promote the expansion of the programs and will remain anonymous (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 1/31). While the state government allocated $10 million toward drug treatment, it did not fund the needle-exchange programs, which is making it difficult to reach IDUs, the AP/Newsday reports. According to a 2005 report by the Kaiser Family Foundation, at least 43% of the state's 48,000 reported HIV/AIDS cases were transmitted through needles. While it is believed that the state has tens of thousands of IDUs, there are only 200 people enrolled in the three pilot programs so far. "All the programs in New Jersey are operating on a shoestring," Scotti said, adding that despite the program's modest start, the needle-exchanges are promising. Kim McCargo, who oversees the exchange at the Camden Area Health Education Center, said it would take $500,000 annually to run a program that could distribute clean needles three days weekly at more than one location. She added that the Camden program is running on about $85,000 in grants, which is enough to provide clean needles once a week. Jerome King, director of Well of Hope Drop-in Center in Paterson, N.J., said, "People are still getting over the stigmas and some of the fears, not knowing if [the needle-exchange center is] a police trap." He added, "Once people feel safe, it will pick up".

New York Times Profiles Documentary Aimed To Help Parents Discuss Sex, HIV/AIDS With Their Kids
McNeil, New York Times, 2/26
New York Times reporter Donald McNeil on Tuesday profiled the new documentary "Please Talk to Kids About AIDS," which aims to help parents talk about sex and HIV/AIDS with their children. The film features two sisters -- Vineeta and Sevilla Hennessey, ages six and four -- as they accompany their parents, who are the filmmakers, to the XVI International AIDS Conference in Toronto in 2006. The documentary has been shown to schools of public health and at film festivals. According to McNeil, a stop at the Condom Project's booth at the conference prompted the filmmakers, Brian Hennessey and Radia Daoussi, to center the film on their daughters. The sisters interview top HIV/AIDS experts and advocates -- including Anthony Fauci, director of NIH's National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, International AIDS Society Director Craig McClure and conference co-chair Mark Wainberg. The girls also talk to condom distributors, a sex toy salesperson, a cross-dresser and an Indian transgender hijra. According to McNeil, the sisters ask questions such as "How does AIDS get into your body?" and "How come they want to have sex with each other?" Fauci in response to one question said, "You know ... when a man and a woman have sexual relationships they get infected. And also from injecting from a needle that is contaminated with the virus." McNeil said the girls get "straightforward answers about bodies conjoining" from McClure, as well as about commercial sex work from a sex worker-rights advocate. According to McNeil, the film is "not really for children" in its present form. "For a parent, however, watching someone else's very young child ... grapple with the topic is a powerful exhortation to begin thinking about how to talk to one's own," McNeil writes. Daoussi said that there is no right age to talk to kids about sex and HIV/AIDS. "It's when they're ready," Daoussi said, adding, "It's our own discomfort that's the problem, not theirs. Kids don't have taboos".
NOTE: This film is available free on-line at http://www.eztakes.com/store/movie/Please-Talk-to-Kids-About-AIDS-Movie-Download.jsp

AIDS Healthcare Foundation Sues City of Los Angeles To Stop Foreclosure of Former AIDS Hospice
Engel, Los Angeles Times, 2/24
AIDS Healthcare Foundation has filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court against the city of Los Angeles to stop it from foreclosing a former AIDS hospice that now serves as an office for the organization's case managers, the Los Angeles Times reports. AHF opened the hospice, called the Linn House, in 1995 on donated property near West Hollywood, Calif. The city granted AHF a $1.1 million, 40-year loan to build the hospice. In 1999, as antiretroviral drugs changed the course of the epidemic, AHF converted the building into offices for staff and meeting rooms for support groups. According to the Times, the city now says that AHF is violating the terms of the loan contract by using the building for offices and not housing. AHF in its lawsuit filed earlier this month argues that Los Angeles waived its right to enforce the terms of the loan because the city had been aware of the facility's new use since 2000. The two groups conceded that they have failed to reach a compromise in their negotiations during the last year, the Times reports. When AHF "conceived the [Linn House] and built it, people were dying within 30 months of being diagnosed with AIDS," AHF President Michael Weinstein said, adding, "We should be celebrating that this change took place, not punishing the organization that came to the rescue. "Mercedes Marquez, general manager of the city Housing Department, said the "law very clearly requires that the money that was lent to the foundation be used for housing." Marquez noted that AHF could convert the building into a nursing facility or transitional housing and remain eligible for the housing loan. Weinstein said that without county funding, the state's Medicaid care program, Medi-Cal, pays too little to keep such a facility in operation. This is the second time AHF has challenged the city of Los Angeles over an AIDS hospice, the Times reports. The foundation closed the Carl Bean House in 2006 after the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors reduced funding for patient care. The county said that AHF was overcharging for the care of indigent patients. The foundation argued that the facility was needed to provide skilled nursing services. According to a study released in December 2007, 46% of the Los Angeles County nursing homes surveyed refused to accept a person living with HIV/AIDS. Brad Sears, University of California-Los Angeles law professor and director of a think tank on sexual orientation law, and two law students conducted the study. The law students posed as hospital discharge planners and called 131 Los Angeles County nursing homes. They found that 36% of the nursing homes responded with an unqualified yes to the question about accepting HIV-positive patients.

Congress Must Allow States, Washington, D.C., To Fund Needle-Exchange Programs, Editorial Says
New York Times, 2/23
Congress "must insist" that Washington, D.C., is allowed to fund needle-exchange programs to prevent the spread of HIV and must pass measures that allow states and health organizations to use federal funds for such programs, a New York Times editorial says (New York Times, 2/23). President Bush earlier this month released his $3.1 trillion fiscal year 2009 budget proposal, which attempts to reinstate a ban on city funding for needle-exchange programs in the district (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 2/5). The ban was effectively lifted when Bush signed the FY 2008 omnibus spending bill (HR 2764).The district plans to invest $650,000 in needle-exchange programs to help prevent the spread of HIV among injection drug users in the city, officials announced last month. Since 1999 the district had been the only U.S. city barred by federal law from using local funds for needle-exchange programs. A report released in November 2007 by district health officials found that injection drug use was the second most common cause of HIV transmission in the city (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 1/3). "Needle-exchange programs save lives" by reducing the spread of HIV, the editorial says, adding, "Yet when it comes to supporting these programs, it seems that the political cowardice never ends." The editorial says, "Now that Washington has a chance to fight back, the White House must not be allowed to hobble that effort"

South Dakota House Approves Legislation That Would Require People Convicted of Intentionally Spreading HIV To Register as Sex Offenders
AP/Rapid City Journal, 2/19
The South Dakota House on Tuesday unanimously voted to approve legislation (SB 65) that would require people who have been convicted of intentionally spreading HIV to register as sex offenders after being released from prison, the AP/Rapid City Journal reports (AP/Rapid City Journal, 2/19). The Senate approved the measure last month. Sen. Sandy Jerstad (D), who sponsored the Senate version of the bill, said the legislation would provide the public with information about the possible dangers people convicted of intentionally spreading HIV pose. Jerstad said that the maximum prison sentence for intentionally spreading HIV is 15 years. Two people in South Dakota have been convicted on intentionally spreading HIV (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 1/28). The measure now goes to Gov. Mike Rounds (R) for consideration.
Medically Speaking
Experimental Microbicide Tenofovir Safe for Women To Use Daily, Study Finds
Times of India, 2/23
The experimental microbicide tenofovir is safe for women to use daily, according to results from clinical trials funded by NIH and conducted in three locations in the U.S. and India, though it is too early to tell if it actually prevents HIV infection, Reuters reports (Fox, Reuters, 2/25). Microbicides include a range of products -- such as gels, films and sponges -- that could help prevent the sexual transmission of HIV and other infections (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 2/6). A study released last week showed that the microbicide candidate Carraguard, though safe, was ineffective in preventing HIV transmission. Other candidates, including nonoxynol-9 and Ushercell, have been found to increase women's risk of HIV infection, according to Reuters (Reuters, 2/25).The study -- presented at Microbicides 2008, the biannual international conference that began on Sunday in New Delhi, India -- was conducted from August 2006 to September 2007 at the National AIDS Research Institute in Pune, India; the Bronx-Lebanon Hospital Center; and at the University of Alabama-Birmingham, the Times of India reports. Tenofovir gel is a HIV-specific microbicide that is designed to prevent HIV from replicating when it comes in contact with uninfected T-cells (Sinha, Times of India, 2/23). The study involved 200 HIV-negative women of reproductive age who were asked to apply the gel either daily or before sexual intercourse for about six months. The women were asked to use condoms as well as the gel, AFP/Yahoo! News reports. The study found no disruption of blood, liver or kidney function and found that women were willing to follow the treatment guidelines. According to the study, more than 90% of the participants said they would consider using the gel to prevent HIV transmission if it were approved. More than 80% of the participants followed the experimental regimen, the study found. Sharon Hillier, lead investigator and director of reproductive infectious diseases at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, said, "Based on what we have learned, we can proceed with greater confidence on a path that will answer whether tenofovir gel and other gels with HIV-specific compounds will be able to prevent sexual transmission of HIV in women when other approaches have failed to do so" (AFP/Yahoo! News, 2/25). Craig Hoesley of UAB said a "key message" of the results is that the "gel is safe to use and well-tolerated by HIV-negative women," adding, "This sets the stage for larger studies to see if tenofovir can prevent HIV infection" (Reuters, 2/25). According to the Times of India, a Phase II trial is under way among 1,000 women in South Africa to test the microbicide's effectiveness at preventing HIV transmission.
In Politics
Clinton Reiterates Commitment To Invest $50B To Fight Global HIV/AIDS
Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 11/30/07
Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.), who is running for the Democratic presidential nomination, on Monday during a speech at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., reiterated her commitment to address the global HIV/AIDS epidemic, the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports (Kleinerman, Cleveland Plain Dealer, 2/26).Clinton in her speech Monday said she "was proud" to sign a pledge to invest $50 billion by 2013 to combat HIV/AIDS, adding that the U.S. "will lead the world in combating AIDS." She also said she has seen how diseases such as HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria "undermine progress across" Africa. "I'm very hopeful that we will make progress in Africa dealing with the multiplicity of challenges that the continent faces," including HIV/AIDS, Clinton said, adding that the U.S. needs a "consistent coherent strategy in dealing with Africa and that is something that I will promote" (Speech transcript, 2/25).In a plan released in November 2007, Clinton also proposed doubling funding for HIV/AIDS research at NIH to $5.2 billion annually, as well as doubling the number of people worldwide who receive HIV/AIDS treatment through U.S. funding. In addition, Clinton said that if elected president, she would try to eradicate malaria deaths in Africa within eight years. She also said that she would commit $1 billion annually for global malaria control efforts.
Internationally
Recruitment of Health Workers in Sub-Saharan Africa Weakening Health Systems, Inhibiting Efforts To Fight HIV/AIDS, Article Says
Reuters, 2/21
The practice of recruiting trained health personnel from sub-Saharan Africa to work in developed nations is weakening health infrastructures and undermining efforts to fight HIV/AIDS in the region, according to an article published in the Feb. 23 issue of the Lancet, Reuters reports. The article was authored by Edward Mills of the British Columbia Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS and colleagues from Uganda, South Africa, Ireland and Argentina (Fox, Reuters, 2/21). "Although active recruitment of health personnel in Africa may lack the heinous intent of other crimes covered under international law, the resulting dilapidation of health infrastructure contributes to a measurable and foreseeable public health crisis," the authors wrote, adding, "The practice should therefore be viewed as an international crime." According to the article, more than 13,000 health workers trained in sub-Saharan African countries now practice in Australia, Britain, Canada and the U.S., AFP/Google.com reports. Recruiting agencies use workshops, advertisements, e-mails and Web sites to attract health workers, according to the article (AFP/Google.com, 2/21). The agencies generally offer to pay higher salaries, cover moving expenses and provide assistance navigating the visa and citizenship process, Toronto's Globe & Mail reports (Branswell, Globe & Mail, 2/22). The authors cite Ghana as an example of the effects of health personnel recruitment, Reuters reports. According to the researchers, Ghana spent $70 million training health professionals who then left to work in the United Kingdom. In comparison, the United Kingdom saved about 65 million pounds, or about $130 million, in training health care costs between 1998 and 2002 by recruiting Ghanaian doctors, the authors write, adding that the country's contribution to service provision is estimated at around 39 million pounds, or $80 million, annually. The recruitment practices could have a significant impact on the fight against HIV/AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa, according to the authors. They project that between 2006 and 2012 "there could be an almost three-fold increase in the number of patients per physician" -- from about 9,000 to 26,000 -- and an "overall decrease in the number of physicians treating patients with HIV from 21,000 to about 10,000." The doctor-to-patient ratio in the U.S. is about 2,000 patients annually to each doctor, they note. Developing countries "are systematically seeing their recruits being enticed away," Mills said, adding, "What we are saying is that if one of these countries that is being systematically poached were to pursue it as a crime, contributing to unrest ... then they would have some leg to stand on" (Reuters, 2/21).Amir Attaran, a professor at the University of Ottawa Institute of Population Health, said he understands the argument but disagrees with the position that such recruitment is an international crime. "I don't have any difficulty saying that it would be lovely and I would prefer to live in a world where it were criminal," Attaran said, adding, "But their argument is that already customary international law tells us that this recruitment should stop ... That is an incorrect understanding of what customary international law is" (Globe & Mail, 2/22). Mills and colleagues said developed countries that benefit from recruits should "make amends" by offering to train, build and staff new health schools, and provide ways for health workers to remain in their home countries.

Asian Development Bank President Kuroda Launches $20M Program Aimed at Reducing Spread of HIV/AIDS Among Youth in Vietnam
AFP/Google.com, 2/20
During a visit to Hanoi, Vietnam, on Wednesday, Asian Development Bank President Haruhiko Kuroda launched a $20 million program aimed at reducing the spread of HIV among young people in the country, AFP/Google.com reports (AFP/Google.com, 2/20).Kuroda met with members of the Youth Advisory Group to discuss strategies to implement the program and the development of a national media campaign aimed at increasing awareness of HIV/AIDS (Trung, Saigon Times Daily, 2/21). Kuroda and the youth discussed informational Web sites about HIV/AIDS, concerts that highlight the disease, and upcoming radio and television programs that address the disease. A television drama series aimed at educating youth about HIV/AIDS is scheduled to air in June, according to Ken Swann of BBC World Service Trust who is helping organize the campaign (AFP/Google.com, 2/20).According to the Times Daily, youth ages 15 to 24 account for 20% of Vietnam's population but 40% of all new HIV cases in the country. Kuroda emphasized that Vietnamese youth should increase their involvement in HIV prevention efforts to slow the spread of the virus among the population. Kuroda said prevention efforts should "actively engage [youth] in dialogue so they're better armed with the knowledge and skills that will enable them to protect themselves" from HIV. He added that programs that work "directly with young people to understand their lives and what makes them vulnerable to risky behaviors will help us make progress" in reducing the spread of HIV among youth. Kuroda also met the Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung on Wednesday to discuss efforts to reduce poverty, increase infrastructure and bolster human resource development in the country (Saigon Times Daily, 2/21).Nearly 300,000 people in Vietnam are living with HIV/AIDS, according to AFP/Google.com. Injection drug users, commercial sex workers and men who have sex with men comprise the largest number of HIV-positive people, although the virus is spreading to the general population, AFP/Google.com reports.

Former French Foreign Minister Douste-Blazy Appointed To Serve as Special U.N. Adviser on Innovative Funding for MDGs
Worsnip, Reuters, 2/19
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has appointed former French foreign minister Philippe Douste-Blazy as special adviser on innovative financing for the U.N. Millennium Development Goals, U.N. deputy spokesperson Marie Okabe announced Tuesday, the AP/International Herald Tribune reports (AP/International Herald Tribune, 2/20). Because "official development assistance is still insufficient to achieve" the MDGs -- which include curbing the spread of HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and other diseases -- Ban "sees the urgency for innovative sources of funding to be developed and promoted worldwide to fill this critical gap," Okabe said in a statement. Douste-Blazy currently serves as chair of the executive board of UNITAID, the international drug purchasing facility that uses airline tax revenues for programs in developing countries. Douste-Blazy will be tasked with promoting UNITAID and finding other sources of alternative funding to achieve the MDGs. Douste-Blazy said that he plans to bring more countries on board to finance the MDGs through a mandatory airfare tax or through voluntary contributions by airline passengers. He also cited online gambling among other alternative types of financing. "Many people are working on innovative financing," Douste-Blazy said, adding, "We now need to provide coordination" (AFP/Tocqueville Connection, 2/19).Douste-Blazy also said that he plans to organize a global conference in 2009 that will focus on development financing from individuals, local officials, foundations, nongovernmental organizations, faith-based groups and businesses. "We want to organize little by little a worldwide citizen movement, with citizens, with private companies, besides states, to set up innovative financing," Douste-Blazy said. He noted that one of his priorities will be the "traceability" of money so that donors can track how their donations are spent.

China To Develop HIV Prevention Campaign Aimed at MSM
Trindle, "Day to Day," NPR, 2/19
China's Ministry of Health on Wednesday announced that the country this year will develop an HIV prevention policy to curb the spread of the virus among men who have sex with men, China Daily reports (Juan, China Daily, 2/21).According to the health ministry's 2008 plan for disease prevention and control, the policy will include detailed prevention methods for MSM. The methods include expanding condom use, prevention training, consultations, HIV testing and treatment for other sexually transmitted infections. A report conducted by the health ministry, the World Health Organization and UNAIDS found that 11.1% of HIV/AIDS cases recorded by the end of 2007 occurred among MSM. According to health department estimates, between five million and 10 million MSM live in China. Recent research indicates that the population's HIV/AIDS prevalence is between 2.5% and 6.5%, Xinhuanet reports (Xinhuanet, 2/20). Wu Zunyou, director of the National Center for AIDS/STD Control and Prevention, said that MSM in 2005 accounted for 0.4% of all new HIV cases, compared with 3.3% last year (China Daily, 2/21).The government also plans to expand methadone replacement therapy programs for drug users, as well as to bolster no-cost services -- such as counseling, testing, antiretroviral drug access and education for AIDS orphans -- according to the health ministry. Clinics that provide replacement therapy have been established in 503 communities in 23 provinces, regions and municipalities, according to China's Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Xinhuanet, 2/20). According to Reuters, about 700,000 people were living with HIV/AIDS in China in 2007, compared with earlier estimates of 650,000 (Buckley, Reuters, 2/20).Wang Weizhen, deputy director of the health ministry's HIV/AIDS prevention department, said, "By learning more about [MSM], we can better protect them against" HIV/AIDS. She added, "Studies are under way in several cities to collect information on [MSM], such as their distribution and behavior patterns" (China Daily, 2/21). In related news, NPR's "Day to Day" on Tuesday reported on HIV/AIDS in the Yi village in rural southwestern China. Some young migrant workers who leave the village for jobs in large cities contract HIV through sex work or drug use and spread the virus when they return home, NPR reports.
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