How is the economic recession impacting HIV prevention in the U.S.?
Munar: The real tragedy of the recent National HIV Prevention Conference was the realization that the new federal Administration is poised to take a more expansive and evidence-based approach to HIV prevention at the very time as states are jettisoning HIV prevention and public health budgets. In his plenary address, the CDC’s newly appointed HIV prevention director Dr. Jonathan Mermin, cited evidence that states have more than $84 million in funding cuts planned for HIV prevention services — and this was before the State of California zeroed its $31 million investment for HIV prevention activities. Even with the $53 million increase slated for HIV prevention activities in President Obama’s Fiscal Year 2010 budget request, HIV prevention services will experience a net funding decrease that is sure the slow efforts to stop growth in the epidemic. The White House recently kicked off a series of town-hall meetings meant to garner public recommendations on a soon-to-be-developed National
