AIDS Education Still ‘Important’ Because of ‘Misinformation, False Sense of Safety,’ Editorial Says
Even with medical advances that can "hold [HIV] at bay," education and prevention programs "must continue," an Oklahoman editorial says (Oklahoman, 6/18). The Oklahoman last week published a five-part series on AIDS (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 6/17). According to the Oklahoman, most people in the United States "don't consider AIDS the crisis it once was." This attitude toward HIV/AIDS could explain the state's recent increase in its number of HIV cases and provide a reason why officials predict that these trends will continue both locally and nationally, the editorial says. Therefore, "education -- particularly with an emphasis on abstinence -- may be the only way to turn back the increases," the Oklahoman says. Although the disease "may not get the headlines it did 10 and 20 years ago," it is "still a threat, and misinformation and a false sense of safety are pervasive," the editorial says, concluding that education efforts are "just as important now as they were in the past" (Oklahoman, 6/18).
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