National HIV/AIDS Awareness Day Focuses on Increasing Number of New HIV/AIDS Cases Among Girls, Women
The first National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, which takes place today, will focus on the increasing number of new HIV/AIDS cases among girls and women, according to a statement by Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Reuters reports. According to Reuters, 46% of HIV-positive adults worldwide in 2005 were women, and in the U.S. black, Latino and younger women were disproportionately affected by the pandemic (Reuters, 3/9). "To stop the disturbing trend of an increasingly female HIV/AIDS pandemic, we need new ways of thinking," Fauci said (NIAID release, 3/8). Fauci suggested an increase in gender-based HIV/AIDS education, adding that more women should participate in clinical trials aimed at understanding how gender affects the transmission of and complications related to the virus (Reuters, 3/9). Julie Scofield, executive director of the National Alliance of State and Territorial AIDS Directors, said, "We have an obligation to respond to the growing needs for HIV/AIDS prevention services and education among women and girls in this country, particularly women of color" (NASTAD release, 3/9).
The Kaiser Family Foundation last week released an updated fact sheet, Women and HIV/AIDS in the U.S. Fact Sheet, which provides the latest data and trends over time of the HIV/AIDS epidemic's impact on women in the U.S.