September 2, 2014


The Abbey, a gay bar in West Hollywood
What's Happening Here? Some HIV...  

You'd be hard-pressed to find a Lionel Richie song in a gay bar these days, but the lyrics to Richie's classic "Dancing on the Ceiling" ring just as true today as|more 

 
   
   
  
Drug diversion

Condoms

Myriad of plans

US HIV Workforce Survey
CDC Shares Resources on the Risks... 
Quality health care is safe health care; neither patients nor providers should be at risk for acquiring HBV, HCV, or other bloodborne infections during health care|more 

Mass Media Campaigns Effective... 
Mass media campaigns can effectively promote condom use and knowledge about HIV infection, according to results of a meta|more 
 

HMO, PPO, EPO: How's A Consumer... 

What's in a name? When it comes to health plans sold on the individual market, these days it's often less than people think. The lines that distinguish HMOs, PPOs, EPOs|more
 
 

We Want Your Opinion...
We are at a critical juncture in the effort to end our nation's AIDS epidemic. New tools are available and new programs are being developed. But these tools are worthless|more 

 



WHAT WE'RE READING

 

A cross-section of articles we've read this week about HIV/AIDS, STIs and a wide cross-section of structural and systemic factors impacting HIV/AIDS in Black communities.

 

Science

 

Discovery of Protein's Ability to Inhibit HIV Release May Lead to Future Antivirus Therapies 

 

A family of proteins that promotes virus entry into cells also has the ability to block the release of HIV and other viruses, University of Missouri researchers have found.

 

Having HIV Means Heart Health Medications May Be Overlooked 

 

People with HIV treated at a major university are less likely to receive medications to support heart health than those who do not have HIV, aidsmap reports. Researchers at Duke University conducted a retrospective study of 890 people with HIV matched by age, sex and ethnicity with 807 HIV-negative people who were all cared for at Duke between 1996 and 2010. The findings were presented at the 20th International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2014) in Melbourne, Australia.

 

HIV Antibodies Block Infection by Reservoir-Derived Virus in Laboratory Study 

 

A laboratory study lends further weight to the potential effectiveness of passive immunotherapy to suppress HIV in the absence of drug treatment. Passive immunotherapy for HIV is an experimental strategy that involves periodically administering broadly neutralizing HIV-specific antibodies (bNAbs) to control the virus.

 

Three Tree Species Found to Host Fungus Deadly to AIDS Patients 

 

Researchers have pinpointed the environmental source of fungal infections that have been sickening HIV/AIDS patients in Southern California for decades. It literally grows on trees.

 

Treatment

 

Dosage of HIV Drug May Be Ineffective for Half of African-Americans 

 

Many African-Americans may not be getting effective doses of the HIV drug maraviroc because they are more likely than European-Americans to inherit functional copies of a protein that speeds the removal of the drug from the body.

 

FDA Approves New Single-Tablet HIV Regimen, Triumeq 

 

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Triumeq, ViiV Healthcare's single-tablet, triple-combination antiretroviral (ARV) regimen, as a first-line therapy to treat HIV. The tablet is comprised of the integrase inhibitor Tivicay (dolutegravir) plus Epzicom (abacavir and lamivudine) and is the first single-tablet regimen to receive approval that does not contain Truvada (tenofovir/emtricitabine). Consequently, Triumeq is an option for those who have impaired kidney function.

 

Miscellaneous

 

Affordable Care Act Exemptions Mean Millions Don't Have to Sign Up 

 

Exemptions allow medical bill-sharing groups to help members pay costs - without Affordable Care Act insurance.

 

AIDS Progress in South Africa Is in Peril 

 

VERENA, South Africa - A fading roadside ad for Selala Funeral Service here captures what was, until recently, the essence of South Africa's AIDS epidemic: "Tombstones Are Available," it reads. "Buy One, Get One Free."

 

Ban on Gay Blood Donors is a Civil Rights Issue, Activists Say 

 

When Ryan James Yezak's workplace hosted a blood drive a few years back, he told his boss he would be happy to donate.

 

Then the West Hollywood resident found out that as a gay man, he was banned for life from giving blood under a federal regulation put in place before he was born.

 

Pa. Camp Helps Youth Affected by HIV/AIDS 

 

OXFORD, Pa. (AP) - It's not that the campers, counselors, and therapists who come together every year in Oxford, Chester County, had forgotten the reality of death that is part of living with HIV/AIDS.

 

12 Ways to Give HIV Stigma a Well-Deserved Side Eye 

 

Words are powerful little things. If you put them together in the wrong way, they can be extremely hurtful. Negative words, thoughts and attitudes about people living with HIV contribute to HIV stigma. Not only is HIV stigma rude and disturbing, it can have concrete and deeply damaging effects on people's health, well-being and rights, and sets us back in our efforts against the HIV epidemic.

In This Issue
Phill Wilson

If we want to end the US HIV epidemic, we must end the epidemic among Black MSM. To do that research about gay and bisexual men must not only include Black MSM, Black MSM's realities must be central not peripheral to the study's design.|more 

 

EVENTS 

 

AIDS 2014 HUB Schedule

 

Wednesday 9/3/14

BTAN city: Jackson, MS 

 

Thursday 9/4/14

BTAN city: Atlanta

 

Thursday  9/4/14

BTAN city: Jackson, FL

 

Friday 9/5/14

BTAN city: Little Rock, AK

 

Monday 9/8/14

BTAN city: Washington, DC

 

Tuesday 9/9/14

BTAN city:  Baltimore

 

Friday 9/12/14

BTAN city: Richmond/Peterersburg 

 

Thursday 9/18/14

BTAN city: Broward

 

Monday 9/22/14

BTAN city: Melbourne

 

Friday 9/26/14

BTAN city: Oakland

 

Thursday 10/2/14

BTAN city:  Houston

 

Thursday 10/16/14

BTAN: Louisiana 

 

 

Brown Bag Lunch (BBL) 

An eight-segment train-the-trainer series that aims to improve HIV care and treatment through training, networking, and mobilization.

Upcoming leader orientations (10 AM PST / 1 PM EST):

  • Oct 8, 2014   

 

Ujima Men's Collective Conference 2014

October 24-26,   

Fort Lauderdale, FL

813-391-6710

www.ujimamen.com 

 

For more information

contact Rebekah

Isreal at

[email protected]

or visit 
 
BLACK AIDS
WEEKLY

PHILL WILSON 

Publisher

 

HILARY BEARD 

Editor-in-Chief

 

TERESA RIDLEY 

Copy Editor

 

LASHIEKA P. HUNTER 

Media and Public Relations Consultant


Founded in May of 1999, the Black AIDS Institute is the only national HIV/AIDS think tank focused exclusively on Black people. The Institute's Mission is to stop the AIDS pandemic in Black communities by engaging and mobilizing Black institutions and individuals in efforts to confront HIV. The Institute interprets public and private sector HIV policies, conducts trainings, offers technical assistance, disseminates information and provides advocacy mobilization from a uniquely and unapologetically Black point of view.

Support the Black Aids Institute through the Combined Federal Campaign (CFC# 12320). The Institute holds the Independent Charities Seal of Excellence for meeting the highest standards of public accountability.