Skip to main content

New Deadly AIDS Virus Worldwide

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Thursday unveiled a blueprint for ending the deadly AIDS virus worldwide, a two-pronged plan that requires increased prevention efforts and greater access to treatment she said would someday lead to "an AIDS-free generation."

"We can reach a point where virtually no children are born with the virus, and as these children become teenagers and adults, they are at a far lower risk of becoming infected than they are today," Clinton said at a press conference to announce the plan.

"And if they do acquire HIV, they have access to treatment that helps prevent them from not only developing AIDS, but from passing the virus on to others," she added.

The blueprint was developed at Clinton's request by the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), a US government initiative launched under former President George W. Bush to help save the lives of HIV and AIDS victims around the world.

The plan spells out a set of specific goals with action steps designed to halt the disease, including:

· Increasing the number of men who are voluntarily circumcised, a procedure that could reduce a man's chances of contracting HIV by 60 percent

· Eliminating new HIV infections among children by preventing mother-to-child transmissions

· Focusing on women and girls who are at higher risk for HIV infections

· Increasing prevention efforts such as condoms and counseling for at-risk populations including people who inject drugs, sex workers, those trafficked into prostitution, and men who have sex with men

"When discrimination, stigma, and other factors drive these groups into the shadows, the epidemic becomes that much harder to fight," Clinton said.

Through PEPFAR, Clinton said this year the US has helped more than five million people obtain the antiretroviral medications (ARVs) used to treat the virus, an increase of more than 200 percent since 2008.

She also hailed a sharp decrease in the number of new HIV infections in low-and-middle income countries worldwide and said with a focused effort, the deadly virus can be halted.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Buried Treasures in Bohol Philippines

Written by Joe Espiritu       Four persons died in a treasure hunting accident last week. They died for nothing. Many had lost their shirts in the venture, the propensity for Filipinos to get rich quick attribute to the treasure hunting mania. The sad part is that only the ignorant venture on the search, those in the know, being sure that nothing will come out of the effort would not think of investing money, time and effort – this time lives – in a fruitless enterprise.        There had been stories of people getting rich uncovering treasure troves in unlikely places. Most stories are false. Ancient graves of archeological and anthropological value had been desecrated by treasure hunters. They had found nothing. Those people may have struck it rich but not from some hidden riches. Contrary to what other people say, there are no buried treasures in Bohol . If there had been, they were unearthed years ago.         If one traces the history of this province from the first time the huma
Post a Comment
Read more

Davao Culinary Night

DAVAO CITY, Feb. 14, 2020 (PIA) -- The Davao Tourism Association (DATA) recently held the first-ever One Davao Culinary Night which featured indigenous inspired dishes concocted by its member chefs . Founded in 1974, the DATA is a group composed of stakeholders coming from tourism-related establishments in Davao Region. The One Davao Culinary Night at the Marco Polo Davao Ballroom on January 31 was held to coincide with the group’s belated 75th anniversary celebration. “What we really wanted to do is to define what is Davao cuisine. When we formed the DATA chef’s club composed of 10 chefs coming from our DATA restaurant members we were able to collaborate and learn from the immersion that we did with the two indigenous tribes we invited- the Kagan and the Tagabawa,” Gatchi Gatchalian, DATA president said. Gatchalian said they wanted the people to discover what Davao cuisine is, as people associate Davao cuisine to ihaw-ihaw (grilled specialties) and kinilaw (cerviche). Gatchalian
Post a Comment
Read more

Sourcing of Agricultural Products

DAVAO CITY, Feb. 19, 2020 -- The Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) signed partnership agreements on Monday, February 17, 2020, with various government agencies and a private institution for the sourcing of agricultural products from agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARB) in this province. These institutions are the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology Region XI, Department of Health Region XI, Davao Regional Medical Center, Southern Philippines Medical Center, and Medical Mission Group Hospital which all agreed to assist in the government’s fight against hunger and poverty in the countryside under the Enhanced Partnership Against Hunger and Poverty program (EPAHP). Cabinet Secretary and EPAHP Committee Chairman Karlo B. Nograles said these partnerships work in two ways. It provides institutions with a steady supply of food items, such as rice, vegetables, root crops and other farm produce, while the farmers gain regular markets for their farm yields. “EPAHP is our government’s
Post a Comment
Read more