NMAC Cancels Executive Directors’ Hawaii Meeting Over ‘Junket’ Concerns
The National Minority AIDS Council's Executive Directors Retreat scheduled for July 15 to 18 in Oahu, Hawaii, has been cancelled because of concerns that the meeting "looked like a junket," according to an NMAC release. NMAC Executive Director Paul Kawata said that although "no government funds" were going to be used to hold the meeting, "there were concerns about the appropriateness of NMAC doing such a meeting" (NMAC release, 4/25). AIDS activist Michael Petrelis said of the cancellation, "To his credit, Kawata acknowledged it would give the wrong perception to people if AIDS executives travel to Hawaii for this retreat, while 400 AIDS patients in Alabama can't get AIDS medications, among other AIDS funding problems." The Washington Times reports that a recent Washington Monthly cover story detailing "AIDS junkets" in "exotic locales" has brought "renewed attention" to how AIDS groups choose to spend their money (McCaslin, Washington Times, 4/26).
This is part of the Morning Briefing, a summary of health policy coverage from major news organizations. Sign up for an email subscription.