Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
CDC Finds That Progress Against HIV Epidemic Plateaued In Recent Years
The Associated Press: Weeks After 2030 HIV Pledge, Report Shows US Headway Stalled
Three weeks after President Donald Trump announced a campaign to end the U.S. HIV epidemic by 2030, new government data show that progress against the disease stalled recently. After declining for several years, the estimated number of new HIV infections held about steady from 2013 to 2016, the latest available data, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Wednesday. (Stobbe, 2/27)
The Hill: CDC: Progress In Preventing HIV 'Stalled'
The report comes three weeks after President Trump announced a new campaign to end the HIV epidemic in the U.S. within 10 years. Eugene McCray, director of the CDC's Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention, framed the report as evidence the campaign is needed. “After a decades-long struggle, the path to eliminate America’s HIV epidemic is clear,” McCray said in a statement. “Expanding efforts across the country will close gaps, overcome threats, and turn around troublesome trends.” (Rodrigo, 2/27)
Stat: As Trump Calls For An End To HIV Epidemic, CDC Says Progress Has Stalled
Although public health researchers and advocates have been largely welcoming of the initiative, some have said that the administration has an uneven track record on HIV policy. Trump, for example, went a year after firing his HIV/AIDS advisory panel before new members were sworn in, and the administration has also turned back health protections for LGBT Americans. Men who have sex with men account for about 70 percent of new HIV infections, the new CDC report said. Among men who have sex with men, infections fell 16 percent from 2010 to 2016 for whites, stayed flat for blacks, and increased 30 percent for Latinos. (Joseph, 2/27)
