AIDS Advocacy Update
Vol. 7 No. 13
August 21, 2001
Congress Debates Patient Protection, HIV Budget
Surgeon General & NIH Report Continue to Generate
Controversy
MDH Office of Minority Health Seeks Input on Health
Disparities
Take Action! Talk to Your Elected Officials at the
State Fair
When Congress returns from the August recess, there will be many issues of concern to HIV advocates up for debate. The Bush administration's budget freezes funding on Ryan White CARE Act dollars, meaning we could be facing the first reduction in funds for HIV care and services. Social conservatives are also expected to put forth restrictions on HIV prevention, particularly around condoms. Tell your member of Congress that now is not the time to back off the fight against HIV.
Surgeon General David Satcher has stated that, although he does not seek appointment to a second term, he has no intention of resigning in the face of controversy around his call to action on sexual health. Several House members have written a letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson in frustration over the recent NIH report on condom effectiveness.
The report has been used by social conservatives to justify more spending on unproven abstinence education programs, despite the reports finding that condoms are effective against the spread of HIV and gonorrhea. The members have expressed concern that the report ignored several peer-reviewed studies and the strong epidemiological data that support condom effectiveness against other STDs. Read the reports for yourself.
The Surgeon General's call to Action is on the web at: www.surgeongeneral.gov/library/sexualhealth.
The NIH Report can be found on the web at www.niaid.nih.gov/dmid/stds/condomreport.pdf.
New money to fight health disparities affecting communities of color was made available in the last legislative session. Some of this money may be available for Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI) and HIV prevention. The Minnesota Department of Health's Office of Minority Health is looking to hear from community groups about how this money should best be spent.
Now is the time to get your organization involved with the planning process
and to make sure that HIV and STI issues are at the table. For more information
on how to get involved, call Gloria Lewis, director of the Office of Minority
Health at
651-296-3275.
Tell them you are concerned about the attitude the Bush administration is showing with regards to comprehensive sexual health education and condom efficacy. They are twisting fact to advance a narrow agenda.
Make sure they know the facts:
Comprehensive sex education that talks about both abstinence and contraception is the most effective message.
8 out of 10 parents support comprehensive sex education.
The evidence is clear that condoms ARE effective in HIV prevention.
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