Trump’s Goal To End HIV Epidemic Greeted With Cautious Optimism Tinged With A Heavy Dose Of Skepticism
The initiative largely focuses on target HIV hot spots and expanding access and use of medication to curb the crisis. Advocates say President Donald Trump's goal is achievable, but it will take more than just an increased push for more medications. Things like health insurance, racism, poverty and other social determinants need to be considered.
The Associated Press:
Trump Launching Campaign To End HIV Epidemic In US By 2030
President Donald Trump is launching a campaign to end the HIV epidemic in the United States by 2030, targeting areas where new infections happen and getting highly effective drugs to people at risk. His move is being greeted with a mix of skepticism and cautious optimism by anti-AIDS activists. State and local health officials are warning the administration not to take money from other programs to finance the initiative, whose budget has not been revealed. (Alonso-Zaldivar, 2/6)
CNN:
Trump's Plan To End HIV Epidemic, Explained
Trump's plan will fund programs in geographic hot spots, data to identify and track the spread of HIV, and the creation of local efforts in targeted areas to expand HIV prevention and treatment. "What's new about this is the laser focus of multi-agencies synergizing together on those areas," Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said Wednesday."So this is something that has not been done before. We have certainly discussed this type of approach, but this is the first time we've had a multi-agency approach where the individual agencies will be working very closely together," he said. (Howard, 2/6)
NPR:
Trump Plan To End HIV Spread By 2030 Faces Obstacles
Several HIV/AIDS advocates say that the goal is achievable, but only if the administration reverses course in several major areas of health care policy, including efforts to weaken the Affordable Care Act, cut funding for Planned Parenthood and limit LGBTQ and immigrant rights. The initiative's fate will depend on Congress, which will decide whether to fund the new proposal and, if so, by how much. In a press call Wednesday, Dr. Brett Giroir, assistant secretary for health, declined to specify how much money the president would request from Congress for the program. Those details will be included in the administration's overall budget request, he said. (Neel and Simmons-Duffin, 2/6)
The Hill:
Trump’s AIDS Turnaround Greeted With Skepticism By Some Advocates
“It sounds very much like teleprompter Trump saying words but not being invested in the statement itself,” said Scott Schoettes, counsel and HIV project director for Lambda Legal, a civil rights organization focused on the LGBT community. (Hellmann, 2/7)
Kaiser Health News:
Trump Pledges To End HIV Transmission By 2030. Doable, But Daunting.
It’s a goal long sought by public health advocates. But even given the vital gains made in drug therapies and understanding of the disease over nearly 40 years, it is not an easy undertaking. “The reason we have an AIDS epidemic is not just for a lack of the medication,” said Dr. Kenneth Mayer, medical research director at the Boston LGBT health center Fenway Institute. “There are a lot of social, structural, individual behavioral factors that may impact why people become infected, may impact if people who are infected engage in care and may impact or affect people who are at high risk of HIV.” (Heredia Rodriguez, 2/6)
PBS NewsHour:
How Realistic Is Trump’s Pledge To End HIV In The U.S.?
In his State of the Union address, President Trump promised that his administration would try to end the transmission of HIV/AIDS in the U.S. William Brangham learns more from Jon Cohen of Science Magazine and Carlos del Rio of Emory University School of Medicine about the attainability of this goal, the practical and political challenges and what could help. (2/6)
The Baltimore Sun:
Baltimore Picked For Federal Program To Help Eradicate HIV/AIDS
Baltimore is one of dozens of hotspots the federal government plans to target as it aims to drastically reduce HIV and AIDS nationwide during the next decade, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The city, along with Montgomery and Prince George’s counties, is among the areas where the federal health department estimates about half of new HIV cases occur — including 48 of some 3,000 counties nationwide, seven states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico. The department plans to direct funding to those areas to boost resources for fighting HIV and AIDS. (Meehan, 2/6)
Tampa Bay Times:
Trump Vowed To ‘Defeat AIDS’ In His State Of The Union. Florida Is Ground Zero.
Reported cases of AIDS and HIV are on the rise in this state. The Miami area — where 1 in 1,000 people have HIV — has the highest rate of new diagnosis of any metro area in the country, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. (Contorno, 2/6)
