World AIDS Day Renews the Commitment to the Fight Against AIDS

On December 1, the world noted the 20th anniversary of World AIDS Day.  It was a sobering day, a moment in time when those of us engaged in the struggle to eradicate the disease took solace in how far we have come, yet lamented how great the challenge is that is still before us.

At the time of the first World AIDS Day, the world was gripped in fear and suffering from a lack of knowledge about AIDS.  Although, over the years, there have been many strides made in AIDS research and education, it is clear that more needs to be done.   

It has been more than 20 years since the death of the first known person with AIDS and still this horrible disease rages.  That is because there is still a worldwide lack of understanding about HIV and AIDS, as well as rampant hostility toward victims of this killer.

On this World AIDS Day, with the slogan "Stop AIDS: Keep the Promise," we must keep the promise to continue funding, continue AIDS education and testing, and continue the fight to put an end to AIDS once and for all.

Recently, some academics publicly argued that the AIDS crisis is “overblown” and tearing through funding that could go to more pressing health concerns.  They said that the AIDS crisis is over and that, outside of Africa, there will never be an AIDS epidemic on a large scale. 

They further asserted that some AIDS based agencies and organizations should close and that funding should be rerouted to other health crises, such as pneumonia, malaria, and measles.  I strongly and vociferously disagree.  With HIV infections totaling around 33 million worldwide, to say that we have no epidemic is dangerous and to have funds pulled from the fight spells disaster.

Senator Hughes demonstrates how fast and easy it is to take the self test.  Know in less than 40 minutes!!!

Diverting funds from one health crisis to address another is basically saying that entire villages in Africa that are dying from AIDS are not important.  We don’t need a pullout; we need a recommitment to finish what we’ve started and a new focus that builds on our success.

Since 1981, more than 25 million people worldwide have died of AIDS and young people account for half of all new worldwide HIV infections. Additionally, AIDS is the leading cause of death of blacks between the ages of 25 and 44 in the U.S.

In the U.S. AIDS is the No. 1 killer of black women between the ages of 25 and 34, says a new report by the Center for American Progress. This new study outlines the scope of the crisis in the United States:

• 53 percent of new HIV infections in 2006 were in gay and bisexual men; 

• black women are 15 times as likely to be infected with HIV as white women;

• the HIV rate in Washington, D.C., is 1 in 20, the same as in sub-Saharan Africa;

• and blacks make up more than 45 percent of new infections, even though they make up only 12 percent of the U.S. population.

In fact, one in four people living with HIV don't know they have it, according to the Centers for Disease Control.  There is good news, however: based on a mathematical model developed by a group of HIV specialists in the World Health Organization, universal and annual voluntary testing followed by immediate antiretroviral therapy treatment can reduce new HIV cases by 95 percent within 10 years.

The Centers for Disease Control reports that, in the United States, 61 percent of the estimated 18,849 people under the age of 25 diagnosed with HIV/AIDS from 2001–2004 in the 33 states with HIV reporting, were black. Blacks also accounted for 50 percent of the AIDS cases diagnosed in the 50 states and the District of Columbia.

The rate of AIDS diagnoses for black adults and adolescents was 10 times the rate for whites and nearly three times the rate for Hispanics, according to the CDC. The rate of AIDS diagnoses for black women was nearly 23 times the rate for white women, and the rate of AIDS diagnoses for black men was eight times the rate for white men.

In Pennsylvania we have been at the forefront of this pressing health crisis. In the past 5 years working with Gov Rendell and the former Sec. of Health Dr. Calvin Johnson, we have increased the funding for HIV prevention, testing and education, significantly.  And we have tried a new and innovative approach to testing, moving the format from a one week test-to-result period to a rapid test program.  In this instance, a person being tested can receive their results in a 30 minute period.  Traditional testing which has a one-week wait until providing the results, had a 40% drop off in people not coming back to receive their results.  Now folks can know their status immediately, and can get the appropriate counseling and treatment.

President-elect Obama understands that strong leadership is needed to address the AIDS crisis here in the U.S.  In an address on World AIDS Day, President-elect Obama made a strong promise to “recommit” to addressing the AIDS crisis here in the United States.  His plan is to use a strong national strategy of education, prevention and treatment, as well as focusing on those communities with the greatest risk.  He added that this strategy must be based on the best available science and built on the foundation of a strong health-care system.

As a promising start to addressing the AIDS epidemic here in the United States, we need a strong national policy on AIDS, much like we have done on the international level.  Of course it is not realistic to believe that government leaders alone can end this war on AIDS, we must all be leaders in this fight. 

The most important thing you can do today is find out your own status.  It is simple to do, go to www.testtogether.org and enter your zip code to get linked to test sites in your area.  Just the simple act of finding out your status is half the battle.