AIDS drug debate continues

Sat, 28 Jul 2012 14:00:00 +0000

WASHINGTON, DC—During the 1996 International AIDS Conference in Vancouver, Dr. David Ho announced that HIV could be suppressed to undetectable levels if patients took a “cocktail” of anti-retroviral drugs.

Time Magazine named him “man of the year,” and according to Rolling Stone, he became the most famous AIDS scientist in the world.

But in the years that followed, ARV distribution was also met with criticism, said Mitchell Warren, director of AVAC, a non-profit that advocates for HIV prevention programs.

“People said we can’t do treatment,” Warren said. “Too expensive. Not feasible. No one’s going to take their pill. What about drug resistance?”
For those who have attended sessions about pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) this week at the 2012 International AIDS conference, this might sound familiar.

Testing matters

Sun, 01 Jul 2012 15:00:00 +0000

BOSTON – Larry Day was diagnosed with HIV in April, 1996, after being tested without giving his consent. He arrived at the hospital sick, and the doctor tested him for HIV without his knowledge. Without the opportunity for counseling or a conversation with the doctor, he said, he wasn’t mentally prepared to hear the news.

In Massachusetts, a law will take effect on July 26 that requires verbal consent from patients before an HIV test can be given, as opposed to necessitating written consent, which is the commonwealth’s current requirement. Massachusetts was the second to last state in the country to change its law to require verbal consent (Nebraska is the only other state where written consent is needed).

States and AIDS advocacy organizations are pushing for routinized testing because according to the CDC, nearly 20 percent of the 1.1 million Americans living with HIV/AIDS do not know they’re infected. Without that knowledge, of course, HIV positive people risk not knowing to seek treatment until it is too late.

Salon.com > Emily Judem

AIDS drug debate continues

Testing matters