| prevention-news@cdcnpin.org 2005-01-14, 7:13 pm |
| CDC HIV/STD/TB Prevention News Update
Friday, January 14, 2005
The CDC National Center for HIV, STD and TB Prevention provides the follo=
wing information as a public service only. Providing synopses of key scie=
ntific articles and lay media reports on HIV/AIDS, other sexually transmi=
tted diseases and tuberculosis does not constitute CDC endorsement. The f=
ollowing summaries were prepared without conducting any additional resear=
ch or investigation into the facts and statements made in the articles be=
ing summarized, and therefore readers are expressly cautioned against rel=
ying on the validity or invalidity of any statements made in these summar=
ies. This daily update also includes information from CDC and other gover=
nment agencies, such as background on Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Repo=
rt (MMWR) articles, fact sheets and announcements. Reproduction of this t=
ext is encouraged; however, copies may not be sold, and the CDC HIV/STD/T=
B Prevention News Update should be cited as the source of the=20
information. Contact the sources of the articles abstracted below for ful=
l texts of the articles.
HEADLINES
NATIONAL NEWS
ALABAMA: =93$3.5 Million in Legislative Funding Needed for AIDS Drug Prog=
ram=94
NEW MEXICO: =93Abstinence Program Is Facing a Fight=94
UTAH: =93Red Cross Blood Quiz Too Risque?=94
MEDICAL NEWS
UGANDA: =93HIV/AIDS Prevention: Behavior Change Communication Campaign As=
sociated with Higher Condom Knowledge=94
LOCAL AND COMMUNITY NEWS
MICHIGAN: =93Parents Help Berkley Schools Revise Sex Ed Classes=94
COLORADO: =93Planned Parenthood Keeps School Role=94
CALIFORNIA: =93Region Hosts AIDS Meeting=94
NEWS BRIEFS
UNITED STATES: =93Black-White Gap Persists in Health; CDC Study Finds Mea=
ger Progress=94
OKLAHOMA: =93Birth Rate to Teen Girls 18 and 19 Declines over Two Decades=
=94
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NATIONAL NEWS=09
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ALABAMA:=20
=93$3.5 Million in Legislative Funding Needed for AIDS Drug Program=94
Associated Press (01.13.05)
On Wednesday, Alabama health officials asked state legislators to se=
t aside $3.5 million during the 2005 session to allow the state to mainta=
in enrollment of patients in its AIDS Drug Assistance Program. ADAP=92s b=
udget is being constrained by drug price increases and longer-living clie=
nts, said Dr. Donald Williamson, state health officer.
Without state funding, Alabama will have to drop 514 of its 1,189 A=
DAP clients. That would push Alabama=92s ADAP waiting list from 443 patie=
nts to 1,092. Alabama is the only state that consistently has an ADAP wai=
ting list, according to a recent Kaiser Family Foundation study.=20
Removing people from ADAP could result in death or long-term hospita=
lization of AIDS patients who are currently living productive lives, said=
Williamson. =93This would be a catastrophe,=94 said Williamson. =93To ha=
ve to take medication away from some people is just an unimaginable trage=
dy for me.=94 =20
Alabama pays $1 million into the $12 million program; the federal go=
vernment pays the rest. But enrollment has now triggered a federal requir=
ement that Alabama match 50 percent of federal funding, said Jane Cheeks,=
the state AIDS director. State funding for HIV/AIDS counseling and preve=
ntion programs count toward the required contribution.=20
Many patients on Alabama=92s waiting list receive drugs through assi=
stance programs run by drug companies. It is not known whether the compan=
ies would up their contributions in response to the waiting list=92s bein=
g more than doubled.=20
Rep. Laura Hall (D-Huntsville) told the Birmingham News she believes=
lawmakers will approve the requested funding. =93I don=92t think we can =
afford not to,=94 she said. =20
NEW MEXICO:=20
=93Abstinence Program Is Facing a Fight=94
Albuquerque Journal (01.13.05)::Jackie Jadrnak; Russell Contreras
Some staff at the New Mexico Department of Health have urged Secreta=
ry-Designate Michelle Lujan Grisham to reject $500,000 in federal funding=
for abstinence education contractors, Grisham said this week. While supp=
orting abstinence, the staff criticized the programs as inaccurately down=
playing the effectiveness of condoms, overplaying the ravages of STDs, an=
d potentially undermining public-health efforts to reduce teen pregnancy =
and STDs.
Grisham said she is committed to fund programs that provide accurate=
information. =93We will not permit, directly or by contract=85 a nonfact=
ual abstinence curriculum,=94 she said.
Best Choice education Services, which receives $75,000 from the stat=
e and $536,000 in direct federal grants, offers abstinence education in A=
lbuquerque Public Schools and others. Its leaders deny any of its informa=
tion is inaccurate. In response to a November public-health review of abs=
tinence programs, Best Choice no longer says condoms offer =93no protecti=
on=94 from a sexually transmitted virus, but that condoms offer =93limite=
d protection,=94 said Mandi Dotson, Best Choice=92s peer monitoring direc=
tor.=20
Best Choice does not give an effectiveness rate for condoms, but say=
s abstinence is the only behavior that is 100 percent protective. =93The =
main reason we cover anything about condoms is because the kids ask,=94 s=
aid Dotson.
A federal study found that kids pledging to be abstinent delay havin=
g sex by an average of 18 months, said Dr. Bruce Trigg, medical director =
of Albuquerque=92s STD program. But once they do have sex, they contract =
STDs at a rate similar to youths who have had no sex education at all, he=
said. =93I see kids all the time who planned to be abstinent but come in=
to see me with an STD.=94
New Mexico surveys found 60 percent of high school students have had=
sex before graduating, and only 12 percent remain abstinent until marria=
ge.
=20
UTAH:
=93Red Cross Blood Quiz Too Risque?=94
Salt Lake Tribune (01.13.05)::Mark Eddington; Ronnie Lynn
On Wednesday before the Utah Board of Education, Diane Ogborn said t=
hat high-school students must be protected from the sex-related questions=
asked by Red Cross blood drive technicians.
=93They just ask very sexually explicit questions without parental c=
onsent,=94 said Ogborn, 37, who argued that state law dictates the sexual=
content to which students can be exposed, and by whom. Technicians=92 qu=
estions like, =93Have you ever had sex with a male who has sex with anoth=
er male?=94 go too far, Ogborn said. =93As a parent, how I read it, it lo=
oks to me like it violates the law.=94
But the questions, which are part of the screening process for HIV a=
nd other STDs, are legal, even in public schools, according to school boa=
rd attorneys. State law does address the sexual content that can be cover=
ed in regular instruction, but the board does not consider the Red Cross =
questions to be instruction.=20
Julia Wulf, acting CEO of the Red Cross=92 Lewis and Clark Blood Reg=
ion, said the organization already sends a parental permission slip that =
includes frank sexual definitions home with each student under age 17 =97=
the minimum age for donating blood in Utah. The explicit questions and d=
efinitions are, Wulf said, required by the Food and Drug Administration. =
=93Our primary concern is the safety of the blood supply. Unfortunately, =
there are people who want to give blood who don=92t understand what is co=
nsidered sexual contact,=94 Wulf said.
Through 75 school-based Red Cross drives, high-school donors contrib=
ute about 5 percent of the 100,000 units of blood collected in the state =
annually. The state board declined to stop the drives but agreed to devel=
op a policy requiring organizers to give parents plenty of advance notice=
of the questions asked and to require parental permission =97 a step Red=
Cross says it already takes.=20
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MEDICAL NEWS=09
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UGANDA:
=93HIV/AIDS Prevention: Behavior Change Communication Campaign Associated=
with Higher Condom Knowledge=94
TB & Outbreaks Week (01.04.05)
In the current study, the authors examined the influences of behavio=
r change communication (BCC) campaigns on knowledge and use of condoms to=
prevent HIV/AIDS and other STDs in Uganda.=20
=93Data were drawn from the 1997 and 1999 Delivery of Improved Servi=
ces for Health (DISH) evaluation surveys, which collected information fro=
m representative samples of women and men of reproductive age in the dist=
ricts served by the DISH project,=94 wrote R. Bessinger and colleagues. U=
sing logistical regressions and controlling for individuals=92 background=
characteristics, the authors assessed associations between BCC exposure =
and condom knowledge and use.=20
According to the results, BCC exposure was strongly associated with =
higher condom knowledge. Men and women who reported BCC exposure were at =
least twice as likely as those with no exposure to know that condoms can =
be used to prevent HIV/AIDS, the researchers reported. =93A dose-response=
effect was observed, suggesting that campaigns using multiple media chan=
nels may be most effective in improving sexual health knowledge,=94 the a=
uthors wrote. =93At the same time, certain gender differences of the infl=
uences on condom use were found, with channels and content of messages se=
eming more important in terms of instilling safer sex practices.=94
=93While there was some evidence of bias of self-report, exploratory=
analysis of the indirect effects of communications campaigns suggested t=
hat impacts may be compounded as overall awareness is increased at the co=
mmunity level eventually leading to behavior change among individuals,=94=
the researchers concluded.
The study, =93Multi-Media Campaign Exposure Effects on Knowledge and=
Use of Condoms for STI and HIV/AIDS Prevention in Uganda,=94 was publish=
ed in Evaluation and Program Planning (2004;27(4):397-407).
************************************************************
LOCAL AND COMMUNITY NEWS=09
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MICHIGAN:=20
=93Parents Help Berkley Schools Revise Sex Ed Classes=94
Detroit News (01.12.05)::Margarita Bauza
A Berkley public schools district health committee of parents, board=
members and clergy has recommended changes to the sex-education curricul=
um. These include updating videos that are about 15 years old, teaching s=
tudents about HIV/AIDS, and separating classes by gender while covering s=
ensitive topics. Parents could excuse children from classes on religious =
grounds or if they considered their child not mature enough for the mater=
ial.=20
A 2004 state law requires that parents comprise a majority on commit=
tees that review health courses and that districts teach abstinence or r=
isk losing state funding. Other Detroit metro area districts considering =
sex education curriculum revisions include Farmington, Birmingham, Roches=
ter and Warren. =20
=93We surveyed our community and took the results to determine what =
to teach and when to teach it,=94 said Nancy Campbell, district assistant=
superintendent. =93We wanted to make sure all children had correct infor=
mation,=94 said Kathleen Bradley, a parent who sits on the Berkley health=
committee and whose two children attend elementary and middle school.
Teaching children about HIV is important, said Maureen McNamara, par=
ent of a Burton Elementary School student. =93They=92ve probably heard of=
it anyhow. This will just put some facts behind it.=94
The district will hold several public meetings to receive feedback b=
efore the board votes on the proposals. Parents and community members can=
see the revisions by arrangement with Campbell=92s office.
COLORADO:
=93Planned Parenthood Keeps School Role=94
Rocky Mountain News (01.13.05)::Dick Foster
After a contentious two-hour debate on Wednesday, the Colorado Sprin=
gs District 11 School Board failed to pass a proposal banning Planned Par=
enthood from making sex-education presentations at district high schools.=
The vote to remove Planned Parenthood resulted in a 3-3 tie. At least 20=
0 people filled the board=92s meeting room and overflowed into the corrid=
or to take sides on the issue.
For the last 17 years, Planned Parenthood has provided one component=
of the district=92s high school sex-education program when asked by spec=
ific high schools to participate. Three of District 11=92s five high scho=
ols currently invite the group to make the presentation, said Peggy Vigil=
, director of the district=92s health education programs. Planned Parenth=
ood=92s presentations cannot include discussions of abortion or birth con=
trol, but they can address the use of contraceptives for disease preventi=
on.=20
Christina Hall, spokesperson for Planned Parenthood, said her group=92=
s program provides =93safe, responsible medically accurate information to=
students.=94 But retired Colorado Springs police officer Jim Hagan disag=
reed, =93It=92s a Trojan horse in our school system. We=92re asking the c=
at to baby-sit the canary.=94
As one of the three board members who supported the proposal to oust=
Planned Parenthood, Craig Cox said the group violated the district=92s s=
ex-education policy by not teaching abstinence only.
CALIFORNIA:
=93Region Hosts AIDS Meeting=94
Press Enterprise (01.13.05)::Meghan Lewit
On Wednesday in Cabazon, the first Inland Empire HIV Conference attr=
acted more than 200 health-care and social-service providers and people l=
iving with HIV/AIDS. The keynoted address was given by Jeanne White-Ginde=
r, the mother of Ryan White, whose battle with AIDS made him a national s=
ymbol of the fight against the disease. =93I can tell you right now, Ryan=
would be so proud of the progress that has been made,=94 she said.
After Ryan=92s death in 1990 at age 18, White-Ginder pushed Congress=
to pass the Ryan White CARE Act providing emergency funding for AIDS. La=
st March, Riverside and San Bernardino counties received about $6.8 milli=
on in Ryan White funds =97 a cut of almost 5 percent from the previous ye=
ar. The reduction resulted from federal cutbacks, said Joe Acosta, commun=
ity chairperson for the Inland Empire HIV Planning Council. An estimated =
6,573 people in the two counties were living with HIV/AIDS as of Oct. 31,=
according to the Riverside County Department of Public Health. When the =
bill comes up for reauthorization, the area could be facing an additional=
8 percent cut, Acosta said.=20
=93We are horrified at what the future holds for AIDS funding and hu=
man services in general,=94 said George Puddephatt, director of social se=
rvices for the Palm Springs-based Desert AIDS Project.=20
Workshop topics included nutrition, substance abuse, and cultural an=
d diversity issues. Organizers hope the conference becomes an annual even=
t.
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NEWS BRIEFS =09
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UNITED STATES:=20
=93Black-White Gap Persists in Health; CDC Study Finds Meager Progress=94
Atlanta Journal-Constitution (01.14.05)::David Wahlberg
African Americans die from almost all major diseases and causes at h=
igher rates than white people, according to new studies published in CDC=92=
s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (2005;54(01)). =93We=92ve been ta=
lking about the problem, but we haven=92t done enough in terms of resourc=
es and making sure interventions known to be effective are used widely in=
both populations,=94 said Dr. Ben Truman, associate director of science =
in CDC=92s Office of Minority Health. Among the report=92s findings: Afri=
can Americans experience gonorrhea at rates 24 times greater than whites;=
HIV at rates 8.7 times greater; and nine-times greater rates of chlamydi=
a and syphilis. Hepatitis B infections are also more common in African Am=
ericans. HIV ranks eighth among the top 10 causes of mortality for blacks=
but is not among the top 10 causes of death for whites. =20
OKLAHOMA:
=93Birth Rate to Teen Girls 18 and 19 Declines over Two Decades=94
Associated Press (01.14.05)
A study by United Way of Central Oklahoma researcher Craig Knutson r=
eports that live births to women ages 18-19 in the state fell by 26 perce=
nt from 1983 (6,564) to 2003 (4,855). The state decline reflects a nation=
al trend; however, Oklahoma remains sixth in the nation for births to 18-=
to 19-year-olds. =93Yes, the rate is coming down, but it=92s still notor=
iously high. This problem is not going away,=94 Knutson said.
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ANNOUNCEMENT: In observance of the Martin Luther King Jr. National Holida=
y, Prevention News Update will not be published on Monday, Jan. 17. Publi=
cation will resume on Tuesday, Jan. 18. =20
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