September 23, 2014


Jesse Milan
Aging Successfully With HIV/AIDS  

I have been living with HIV for 32 years. I was infected in my 20s. I'm aging with HIV.  I am not alone.One-third of the 1.1 million Americans living with HIV are 50|more 

 
   
   
  
Greg Millet

Doctor counsels patient

Sylvia M. Burwell

BTAN
Q&A: Greg Millett, Vice President... 
Recently Greg Millett left the federal government to work for amfAR, the Foundation for AIDS Research. Here's what he has to say about the U.S.|more 

Enhanced HIV Patient Contact Improves... 
Taking specific steps to increase contact with HIV patients improved clinic visit consistency and visit adherence in a randomized trial at 6 US clinics. Additional|more 
 

HHS Announces $60 Million to Help... 

The Affordable Care Act is working for millions of Americans who are able to access quality health coverage at a price they can afford, in large part because of the |more
 
 

BTAN to Meet Prior to USCA
On Wednesday, October 1st, the day before United States Conference on AIDS (USCA), The Black AIDS Institute will convene an all-day National Black Treatment Advocates|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.

 

MSM

 

Learning About Additional HIV Prevention Methods Doesn't Undermine Gay Men's Intentions to Use Condoms 

 

Health promotion interventions can combine information about condoms and alternative biomedical prevention methods without undermining attitudes and intentions to use condoms, according to an experimental study published in the September issue of AIDS & Behavior.

 

San Francisco Official Says He Takes Truvada to Prevent H.I.V., and More Gay Men Should, Too 

 

Scott Wiener, a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, made an unusual public announcement on Wednesday: He takes Truvada, a daily antiviral pill, to greatly reduce his risk of contracting H.I.V.

 

Prevention

 

Educational Video Successfully Encourages HIV Testing in ER 

 

A 16-minute educational video on HIV testing increased emergency room visitors' testing willingness by a third in a recent study funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse. Publishing their findings in AIDS and Behavior, researchers showed the video to 160 people who initially declined an offer to receive an HIV antibody test while seeking care at a high-volume, urban emergency department.

 

Science

 

Cats Lend a Helping Paw in Search for Anti-HIV Drugs 

 

A protein found in both the feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) -- which causes AIDS in cats -- and the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) might inspire new anti-HIV drugs, researchers report. They offer up a detailed, 3-D molecular map of FIV integrase that could help scientists also understand how this protein works in HIV.

 

The Genetics of Coping with HIV 

 

We respond to infections in two fundamental ways. One is 'resistance,' where the body attacks the invading pathogen and reduces its numbers. Another, which is much less well understood, is 'tolerance,' where the body tries to minimize the damage done by the pathogen. A study using data from a large Swiss cohort of HIV-infected individuals gives us a glimpse into why some people cope with HIV better than others.

 

 

Treatment

 

IDSA, HIVMA Call for State Medicaid Programs to Lift Hepatitis C Prescribing Restrictions from ID and HIV Doctors 

 

At a time when curative treatment is available for hepatitis C (HCV), some state Medicaid programs are instituting harmful barriers to the new HCV treatment, including limiting the availability of physicians to treat this growing epidemic by restricting infectious diseases and HIV physicians from prescribing life-saving medications. An estimated 4 million people in the U.S. are infected with HCV and at least 20,000 new infections occur every year.

 

Long Acting HIV Drugs to be Developed 

 

HIV drugs which only need to be taken once a month are to be developed at the University of Liverpool in a bid to overcome the problem of 'pill fatigue'.

 

 

Maker of Costly Hepatitis C Drug Sovaldi Strikes Deal on Generics for Poor Countries 

 

NEW DELHI - The maker of one of the costliest drugs in the world announced on Monday that it had struck deals with seven generic drug makers in India to sell lower-cost versions of the medicine - a $1,000-a-pill hepatitis C treatment - in poorer countries.

 

Miscellaneous

 

Arizona Republican Official Resigns After Remarks About Medicaid Recipients 

 

The former Arizona lawmaker who sponsored the state's stringent anti-immigration law resigned as a top state Republican official late Sunday amid criticism for remarks he made supporting mandatory birth control or sterilization for Medicaid recipients.

 

Coalition Continues Push for Rescinded HIV/AIDS Allocations 

 

A statewide coalition of HIV/AIDS organizations, most of whom primarily serve persons of color, is continuing with its efforts to receive allocations they had been awarded through the state's appropriation process.

 

The Fiery of STD's Among US States 

 

Last year researchers conducted an online survey concerning relationships of nearly 10,000 people worldwide that included 23,000 from the United States for the book called The Normal Bar. Respondents were 18 years and older and relationships included heterosexual and same sex. The results showed that 40% of respondents said they had sex three or four times weekly.

 

Health Law Has Caveat on Renewal of Coverage 

 

WASHINGTON - Millions of consumers will soon receive notices from health insurance companies stating that their coverage is being automatically renewed for 2015, along with the financial assistance they received this year from the federal government.

 

Punishment or Child Abuse? 

 

WASHINGTON - THE indictment last week of the N.F.L. player Adrian Peterson by a Texas grand jury for reckless or negligent injury to a child has set into relief the harmful disciplinary practices of some black families. Mr. Peterson used a "switch," a slim, leafless tree branch, to beat his 4-year-old son, raising welts on the youngster's legs, buttocks and scrotum. This is child abuse dressed up as acceptable punishment.

 

U.S. to End Coverage Under Health Care Law for Tens of Thousands 

 

WASHINGTON - The Obama administration said on Monday that it planned to terminate health insurance for 115,000 people on Oct. 1 because they had failed to prove that they were United States citizens or legal immigrants eligible for coverage under the Affordable Care Act. It also told 363,000 people that they could lose financial aid because their incomes could not be verified.

 

What to Do When a Patient Admits an H.I.V. Phobia 

 

Dr. Abigail Zuger on the everyday ethical issues doctors face.

 

In This Issue
Phill Wilson

Thursday, September 18th, was National HIV/AIDS and Aging Awareness Day. So this week we lead off with an essay by Black AIDS Institute board chair emeritus Jesse Milan on the challenges of aging with HIV/AIDS.|more 

 

EVENTS 

 

AIDS 2014 HUB Schedule

 

Friday 9/26/14

BTAN city: Oakland

 

Thursday 10/2/14

BTAN city:  Houston

 

Thursday 10/16/14

BTAN: Louisiana  

 

Black Treatment Advocates Network at USCA

 

Wednesday 10/1/14

8:30 AM to 5:30 PM

Location: Hilton San Diego

Bayfront Hotel  

Click here to RSVP

 

 

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    

  

Health Insurance Marketplace Open Enrollment Key Dates:

 

11/15/14 - Open Enrollment begins

 

12/15/14 - Enroll by the 15th for new coverage that begins by Jan. 1, 2015

 

12/31/14 - Coverage ends for 2014 plans. Coverage for 2015 plans can start as soon as Jan 1, 2015.   

 

2/15/14 - Last day you can apply for 2015 coverage before the end of Open Enrollment   

 

Visit healthcare.gov for more infomation 

  

For more information on these events 

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.