Monday, July 23, 2012
Associated Press
WASHINGTON
The International AIDS Conference opened Sunday with a call for governments not to let tight budgets roll back progress against the epidemic at a critical turning point.
The conference’s goal is to turn the tide on HIV.
Experts say science has provided tools to finally stem the spread of this intractable virus.
San Francisco AIDS specialist Dr. Diane Havlir said it would be “an extraordinary failure of global will and conscience” if financial cutbacks block this chance.
She said the world has a chance to “start to end AIDS.”
International AIDS Society President Dr. Elly Katabira urged the more than 20,000 scientists, policy-makers and people living with HIV at the meeting to “resolve together to never go backward.”
United Nations AIDS chief Michel Sidibe calls the impact on black Americans shocking.
Of the nearly 1.2 million Americans with HIV, nearly half are black men and women. And black gay and bisexual men are at highest risk. Access to treatment is only one hurdle. Sticking with medication daily for life is another.