As viral loads continue to be "off the charts" among Black gay and bisexual men, the Centers for Disease Controls has launched a new social-media campaign to reverse the trend. The report analyzes data that show new HIV infections among young Black gay/bi men have increased by almost half. Read HERE.
Thanks to Phill Wilson, Cornelius Baker, David Malebranche,Harlem United, Kali Lindsey, NBGMAC, Venton Jones, NAESM, Daniel Driffin, Centers for Disease Controls, Kevin Fenton and many others.
As HIV viral loads continue to be "off the charts" among urban and rural networks of Black gay/bi men, the Centers for Disease Controls has launched a new social-marketing campaign to reverse the trend. The report analyzes data that show new HIV infections among young Black gay and bisexual men have increased by almost half. Read HERE. Part Two will drop next week.
Thanks to Phill Wilson, Cornelius Baker, David Malebranche,Harlem United, Kali Lindsey, NBGMAC, Venton Jones, NAESM, Daniel Driffin, Centers for Disease Controls, Kevin Fenton and many others.
Nearly one in five gay/bisexual men in the 21 US cities hardest hit by HIV/AIDS are HIV positive and nearly half don't know it, according to new analysis from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Black men who have sex with men and younger Black MSM were even less likely to know their HIV status.
The new CDC data expands on previous reports that Black MSM are particularly impacted by the HIV epidemic. Twenty-eight percent of black MSM are HIV positive, compared to 18 percent of Hispanic and 16 percent of white MSM, according to the findings published in CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
The study involved more than 8,000 men. The data also show that Black MSM are most in need of HIV testing and prevention. Black MSM with HIV were least likely to be aware of their infection—59 percent unaware vs. 46 percent for Hispanic MSM and 26 percent for white MSM. The numbers for younger Black MSM are even more startling: Among HIV-infected black MSM under age 30, 71 percent were unaware of their infection compared to 40 percent of HIV-infected white MSM under age 30.
Kevin Fenton, M.D., Ph.D., director of the CDCs National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention, spoke to Rod 2.0 about the data. "The numbers among younger Black men who have sex with men are particularly concerning to CDC," Dr. Fenton tells R20. "If you look at the data, the numbers for younger Black MSM are more pronounced in some cities in the Midwest and the South. There are multiple factors in these smaller cities. You could have greater segregation, more homophobia ... and fewer community organizations serving Black MSM and younger Black MSM."
More of Dr. Fenton's interview later on R20 ...
Black MSM—especially younger ones—have seen the largest increase in infections across the country. In July, the White House unveiled
the nation's first National HIV/AIDS Strategy. The strategy
shifts focus to "concentrate HIV prevention efforts at the highest-risk
population"—including men
who have sex with men (MSM) and black Americans—but entails no new additional spending. Read our series on the NHAS for the Black AIDS Institute HERE, HERE and HERE.
The second in our new four-part series for the Black AIDS Institute. How will health care reform and cutbacks in the AIDS Drugs Assistance Program impact Black, HIV positive gay/bisexual men and the Black community?
When the Obama administration released the National HIV/AIDS Strategy
(NHAS) in July, it was described it as "one of the most anticipated
moments" in the domestic fight against HIV/AIDS. The four-part plan
re-focuses resources on the domestic epidemic and prioritizes Blacks and Black men who have sex with men. That means that Black people—especially Black gay/bi men, who have been decimated by the epidemic—stand to gain a lot.
For
the series, we interview a cross-section of Black leaders on HIV/AIDS,
including the Center for Disease Control's Dr. Kevin Fenton, Dr. David
Malebrance, former Manhattan Borough President C. Virginia Fields and more. Read the first part HERE. Read the second part HERE.
When the Obama administration released the National HIV/AIDS Strategy (NHAS) in July, it was described it as "one of the most anticipated moments" in the domestic fight against HIV/AIDS. The four-part plan re-focuses resources on the domestic epidemic and prioritizes Blacks and Black men who have sex with men. That means that Black people—especially Black gay/bi men, who have been decimated by the epidemic—stand to gain a lot.
For the series, we interview a cross-section of Black leaders on HIV/AIDS, including the Center for Disease Control's Dr. Kevin Fenton, Dr. David Malebrance, former Manhattan Borough President C. Virginia Fields, University of Pennsylvania's Dr. Robin Stanback Stevens and many more. Read the first part HERE.
PrEP is one of the most promising prevention tools on the immediate horizon. With PrEP, HIV-negative individuals take antiretroviral drugs to prevent becoming infected with the virus. The first PrEP studies are testing tenofovir alone (Viread), while several later studies are testing tenofovir plus emtricitabine (Truvada). For that study, CDC-4323, Lisa Grohskopf, MD, from the CDC and her colleagues enrolled 400 HIV-negative MSM...The study was not designed to determine whether tenofovir could prevent HIV transmission, only whether or not it was safe compared with a placebo. All of the men were tested for HIV regularly and received rigorous HIV prevention counseling and condoms throughout the study. Grohskopf and her colleagues found that men taking tenofovir had no more side effects than men taking a placebo.
The promising PrEP results follow a breakthrough tenofovir microbicide study that found significant reduction in HIV transmissions in women who used the vaginal gel. The gel could theoretically be used in anal sex, but that has not been tested.
Tenofovir is one of so-called HIV "morning after pills". The post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) is a cocktail of usually 3 or 4 anti-retoviral medications that must be taken after possible exposure to HIV and for up to 30 days. There are anecdotal reports that some gay men are taking "T" after a weekend of drug use and unprotected sex. More on PEP HERE and HERE.
Meanwhile: A "substantial" proportion of gay men say they "would reduce condom use" if pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) proves to be effective at preventing HIV, according to study released last month and presented at AIDS 2010.
The Centers for Disease Control is very bullish on the PrEP findings, especially the prevention possibilities for Black MSM. Dr. Kevin Fenton, director of the CDC's National Center for HIV/AIDS, talked with R20 at AIDS 2010 and we'll publish that interview soon.
Want to get tested? Click HERE for your closest location.
On the June 22, 2010 broadcast of ABC's The View," host
Sherri Shepherd and guest host D.L. Hughley perpetuated dangerous myths
about HIV/AIDS and black gay/bisexual men.
GLAAD has issued an action alert after reaching out to The View and the show refused to apologize. Go HERE to find out how to emailand its producers, and please consider signing a petition demanding an apology.
Two personal friends of Shepherd, who has previously denied evolution and says she
believes the Earth could be flat, have contacted Rod 2.0 and
criticized our calling attention to the matter. Shepherd's friends have taken to Twitter and applauded her for "doing something right" and are labeling viewers seeking accurate HIV information as "haters."
BACKGROUND While discussing the FDA ban
on blood donations from gay and bisexual men, the comedian guest Hughley claimed black gay, bisexual and so-called "down low" men were fueling the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the black community. Said Hughley: "When you look at the prevalence of HIV in the African American Community, it's primarily young women who are getting it from men who are on the down low."
Shepherd added: "It's very prevalent with African American women because they come
home and have sex with their wives or their girlfriends. And they're not
telling them that they're gay. It's so big in the Black community with women because they're having
unprotected sex with men who have been having sex with... with men."
And here's the clip ...
CDC: NO LINK BETWEEN "DOWN LOW" AND HIV 1) As reported many times on R20, the Centers for Disease Control has debunked this
dangerous HIV/AIDS myth. On "Men on the Down Low" the CDC reports: "The phenomenon of men on the down low has gained much attention in
recent years; however, there are no data to confirm or refute publicized
accounts of HIV risk behavior associated with these men." (http://bit.ly/17eHXq)
2) Gregorio Millett, Senior Policy
Adviser in the White House Office of National AIDS Policy, co-authored a study on black gay/bisexual men and HIV. In a February 2010 interview with Black AIDS Weekly, Millett says: "I tried to shed light through research [on] the
"down low" and its relationship to HIV infection among African
Americans. My colleagues and I were among the first to scientifically
prove with quantitative data that identifying as "down low" was not
associated with greater sexual-risk behaviors with male or female
partners; nor was it associated with a greater likelihood of HIV
infection." (http://bit.ly/cNCtRl)
3) That study was co-authored by Emory University's Dr. David Malebranche and is called "Focusing 'Down Low": Bisexual Black men, HIV Risk and Heterosexual Transmission." The study concludes there is "no" linkage between bisexual black men and HIV and concludes: "The contribution of high-risk heterosexual black men to the rising HIV
caseload among black women has been largely ignored." (http://snipr.com/xvixc)
4) In a 2008 CDC-sponsored study reported at Indiana University's Archives for Sexual Behavior, Malebranche writes: "With little evidence to support it, the idea that such a small
population (HIV-positive bisexually active black men) is causing all or
the majority of infections among heterosexual black women is a fallacy
at best." (http://bit.ly/9hy8Bc)
5) Dr. Kevin Fenton, director of the Centers for Disease Control's National
Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD and TB Prevention, discussed his research with NNPA News in October 2009. Fenton said the
CDC "has looked to see what proportion of [HIV] infections is coming
from male partners who are bisexual and found there are actually
relatively few." Read the full interview ... (http://bit.ly/dbm3yv)
Contact the emails above or @TheViewTV and ask for an apology. Email or tweet the shortened CDC "bit" links to the emails above and @TheViewTV. Ask all your timeline to RT. Tell @TheViewTV that @SherriEShepherd and DL Hughley @FNYKAT are not qualified to discuss medical facts.
Contact @SherriEShepherd and tell her that you are a not
"hater" and would like her to provide accurate HIV information. Demand
an apology and tweet the shorten links above.
Please contact DL Hughley @FNYKAT and ask him to provide accurate HIV information, too. Demand
an apology and tweets the shortened links above.
Also: If you see any prominent black gay men on Twitter or Facebook defending Shepherd, please email R20 with those names or links immediately. We'll be taking care of them soon.
Federal- and state-funded AIDS Drug Assistance Programs pick up the cost of expensive antiretroviral drugs and other medications for the low-income HIV-positive. Without these lifesaving pharmaceuticals, the virus can multiply, making the person not only sicker but also more contagious. ADAPs reach approximately one-quarter of all people with HIV/AIDS; approximately 60 percent are people of color. But with soaring state deficits nationwide and rising HIV caseloads--particularly among Black people--budget reductions are hitting HIV programs and ADAPs especially hard, from North Carolina to California.
The ADAP cutbacks are disproportionately affecting black gay men, who discuss what their life would be like without ADAP. Read the full article HERE.
Also at Black AIDS Weekly: Dr. David Malebranche and CDC's Dr. Kevin Fenton discuss the myth that the "down low" is fueling the HIV/AIDS crisis in the black community. Read the full article HERE.
A very interesting interview with longtime HIV/AIDS researcher Gregorio Millett at Black AIDS Weekly. Millett, the Senior Policy Adviser in the White House Office of National AIDS Policy, is helping to develop the Administration's effort to develop our country's first National AIDS Strategy. Millett talks to BAW about incorporating black gay men in the NAS:
I used to bristle at the stigmatization of Black gay men--that HIV prevalence was likely higher in our community because of promiscuous sex and rampant drug abuse. It compelled me to conduct a series of research studies while at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that proved that Black men who have sex with men, and African Americans generally, do not engage in higher-risk behaviors that place us at greater risk for HIV infection. In fact, I found that existing community prevalence, density of sexual networks and less access to care likely explained the racial disparities in infection rates.
On the myth that the "down low" fuels the soaring HIV rates in the black community:
Another gross generalization that I tried to shed light on through research was the "down low" and its relationship to HIV infection among African Americans. My colleagues and I were among the first to scientifically prove with quantitative data that identifying as "down low" was not associated with greater sexual-risk behaviors with male or female partners; nor was it associated with a greater likelihood of HIV infection. Dr. Kevin Fenton at the CDC recently used the data to dispute the role of the "down low" in HIV-infection rates among African Americans.
Emory University researcher Dr. David Malebranche and colleagues from the CDC had similar findings that showed black "DL"/bisexual men are not fueling the HIV epidemic.
The Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS (PACHA) had its first meeting about two weeks ago and announced its 24 new members, including Black AIDS Institute Executive Director Phill Wilson. PACHA also serves the White House Office of National AIDS Policy (ONAP) and will play an important role in providing input for the National HIV/AIDS Strategy.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention releases new estimates on the annual number of new HIV infections in the United States. The new data show at least 40 percent more annual infections than previous calculations. The new data were published Sunday in a special HIV/AIDS issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, which was released at the AIDS conference in Mexico City.
The Washington Post: "The main finding of its report is that HIV incidence in 2006—the latest year for which data are available—was 56,300 new cases of infection. That is 40 percent higher than the previous government estimate of 40,000, but statistical back calculation suggests that HIV incidence has been unchanged since about 2000." The revised estimates are based on data from a new advanced testing method, which enables researchers to detect recent HIV infections.
The epidemic continues to decimate the black community and black gay men the hardest. Researchers say blacks are at least 45 percent of new infections in 2006 and the prevalence of HIV is "seven times higher in blacks and three times higher in Hispanics than in whites." Dr. Kevin Fenton, who heads the CDC's AIDS branch, says young black gay men are "especially" at risk and the soaring seroconversions in that demographic is evidence prevention campaigns have "not reached all those who need it." Unfortunately, at the same time New York City health officials say the largest increases in HIV rates are among young black gay men, the city's best known black gay service and HIV prevention organization is in a shambles.
Writing in The Daily Voice, Phill Wilson, the founder and chief executive officer of the Black AIDS Institute, says the CDC's most "urgent research priority" is to offer prevention and risk assessment to the black community. "We cannot afford a long delay in getting this information out, and the CDC must clearly communicate directly with the Black community about when the information will be available."
PrEP is one of the most promising prevention tools on the immediate horizon. With PrEP, HIV-negative individuals take antiretroviral drugs to prevent becoming infected with the virus. The first PrEP studies are testing tenofovir alone (Viread), while several later studies are testing tenofovir plus emtricitabine (Truvada). For that study, CDC-4323, Lisa Grohskopf, MD, from the CDC and her colleagues enrolled 400 HIV-negative MSM...The study was not designed to determine whether tenofovir could prevent HIV transmission, only whether or not it was safe compared with a placebo. All of the men were tested for HIV regularly and received rigorous HIV prevention counseling and condoms throughout the study. Grohskopf and her colleagues found that men taking tenofovir had no more side effects than men taking a placebo.
