Since 2006, McKesson has partnered with humanitarian organization World Vision to provide more than 175,000 World Vision Caregiver Kits to local community caregivers who care for those living with AIDS in Africa, Asia and Latin America.
The Company's expertise and infrastructure in distributing medical-surgical supplies have allowed McKesson to negotiate dramatic discounts with suppliers on the kits' contents, passing these savings on to the community groups — schools, churches and businesses — that purchase materials and assemble the kits for World Vision to distribute in remote areas of developing countries.
President Barack Obama said Friday the U.S. will overturn a 22-year-old travel and immigration ban against people with HIV early next year.
The order will be finalized on Monday, Obama said, completing a process begun during the Bush administration.
The U.S. has been among a dozen countries that bar entry to travelers with visas or anyone seeking a green card based on their HIV status.
"If we want to be the global leader in combatting HIV/AIDS, we need to act like it," Obama said at the White House before signing a bill to extend the Ryan White HIV/AIDS program. Begun in 1990, the program provides medical care, medication and support services to about half a million people, most of them low-income.
The bill is named for an Indiana teenager who contracted AIDS through a blood transfusion at age 13. White went on to fight AIDS-related discrimination against him and others like him and help educate the country about the disease. He died in April 1990 at the age of 18.
His mother, Jeanne White-Ginder, attended the signing ceremony, as did several members of Congress and HIV/AIDS activists.
In 1987, at a time of widespread fear and ignorance about HIV, the Department of Health and Human Services added the disease to the list of communicable diseases that disqualified a person from entering the U.S.
The department tried in 1991 to reverse its decision but was opposed by Congress, which went the other way two years later and made HIV infection the only medical condition explicitly listed under immigration law as grounds for inadmissibility to the U.S.
The law effectively has kept out thousands of students, tourists and refugees and has complicated the adoption of children with HIV. No major international AIDS conference has been held in the U.S. since 1993, because HIV-positive activists and researchers cannot enter the country.
Obama said that by lifting the ban, the U.S. will take a step toward ending the stigma against people with HIV/AIDS, something he said has stopped people from getting tested and has helped spread the disease. More than 1 million people live with HIV/AIDS in the U.S., and more than 56,000 new infections are reported every year.
Obama noted his own effort several years ago to help combat the stigma. During a 2006 visit to Kenya, his father's native country, then-Sen. Obama and his wife, Michelle, publicly took an HIV/AIDS test.
The 11 other countries that ban HIV-positive travelers and immigrants are: Armenia, Brunei, Iraq, Libya, Moldova, Oman, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Korea and Sudan, according to the advocacy group Immigration Equality.
Several such groups welcomed Obama's announcement.
Rachel B. Tiven, executive director of Immigration Equality, said the ban pointlessly has barred people from the U.S. and separated families with no benefit to public health.
"Now, those families can be reunited, and the United States can put its mouth where its money is: ending the stigma that perpetuates HIV transmission, supporting science and welcoming those who seek to build a life in this country," said Tiven, whose organization works for fairness in immigration for gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and HIV-positive people.
Barack Obama said that a US travel ban against people infected with the HIV virus will be overturned early next year.
The order will be completed on Monday, Obama said, finishing a process begun during the administration of George Bush.
The United States is one of about a dozen countries that bar entry to travellers based on their HIV status. The ban has been in place for more than 20 years. Obama said it will be lifted just after the new year, after a waiting period of about 60 days.
"If we want to be a global leader in combating HIV/Aids, we need to act like it," Obama said at the White House before signing a bill to extend the Ryan White HIV/Aids programme. Begun in 1990, the program provides medical care, medication and support services to about half a million Americans with HIV or Aids, mostly low-income people.
The bill is named for an teenager who contracted Aids through a blood transfusion at age 13. Ryan White went on to fight Aids-related discrimination against him and others like him in the late 1980s and to help educate Americans about the disease. He died in April 1990 aged 18.
His mother, Jeanne White-Ginder, attended the signing ceremony, as did several members of Congress and HIV/Aids activists.
In 1987, at a time of widespread fear and ignorance about HIV, the department of health and human services added the disease to the list of communicable diseases that disqualified a person from entering the United States.
The department tried in 1991 to reverse its decision but was opposed by Congress, which in 1993 went the other way and made HIV infection the only medical condition explicitly listed under immigration law as grounds for inadmissibility to the country.
The law effectively has kept out thousands of students, tourists and refugees and complicated the adoption of children with HIV. No major international Aids conference has been held in the United States since 1993 because HIV-positive activists or researchers could not enter the country.
Obama said lifting the ban "is a step that will save lives" by encouraging people to get tested and to get treatment.
President Obama announced an end to the HIV Travel and Immigration Ban during the signing ceremony for the vital Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Extension Act this afternoon.
The travel ban, a legacy of Jesse Helms, has been in place since 1987. It prevented HIV+ non-U.S. citizens from traveling or immigrating to the United States unless granted a special waiver from the the Department of Homeland Security.
The two men at the centre of Scotland's largest known child abuse network have been jailed for life.
Neil Strachan, 41, attempted to rape an 18-month-old boy while 38-year-old James Rennie sexually assaulted a three-month-old.
Strachan was sentenced to a minimum of 16 years in prison, while Rennie was ordered to serve at least 13 years.
Six other men had already been sentenced for their involvement in the network.
Strachan, who is HIV positive, has already served a three-year prison sentence in 1997 for abusing a boy. Rennie was the chief executive of LGBT Youth Scotland, which offers advice to young gay and lesbian people.
Passing sentence on the pair, judge Lord Bannatyne referred to Strachan's abuse of the 18-month-old boy, which was captured in a photograph known as the "Hogmanay image" because it was taken on New Year's Eve in 2005.
The judge told Strachan: "By its very nature, what is shown in that photograph is utterly appalling and would shock to the core any right-minded person who has had to see it.
But we know that in nearly all cases life does not mean life, with good behavior they could be out in a matter of years.
What exactly, as a civil society should we do with paedophiles? can counselling help? or should we lock them up for life, as they say its' 'better to be safe than sorry' or, as some people mention, shall we bring back the death penalty?
One of the major health issues facing the world — especially the developing world — continues to be HIV and AIDS.One of the major health issues facing the world — especially the developing world... more
Make a difference this Thanksgiving and Buy Your Thanksgiving Pies from Project Angel Food.
Your $25 pie purchase pays for the preparation and delivery of five nutritious meals to those affected by HIV/AIDS, cancer and other life-threatening illnesses.
Project Angel Food's mission is to nourish the body and spirit of men, women and children affected by HIV/AIDS, cancer, and other life-threatening illnesses. Volunteers and staff cook and deliver free and nutritious meals prepared with love throughout Los Angeles County, acting out of a sense of urgency because hunger and illness do not wait.
With a corps of 1,500 + dedicated volunteers, the agency provides more than 11,000 meals a week to 1,600 clients of all ages and backgrounds for whom a healthy meal, delivered with a warm smile, is truly lifesaving. Project Angel Food celebrates 20 years of service to the Greater Los Angeles community in 2009.
Project Angel Food - 922 Vine Street - Los Angeles, CA 90038-2702 - tel 323.845.1800 - fax 323.845.1818
www.angelfood.orgMake a difference this Thanksgiving and Buy Your Thanksgiving Pies from Project Angel... more
A review of a trial of a HIV vaccine in Thailand has concluded that it does show real signs of a protective effect.A review of a trial of a HIV vaccine in Thailand has concluded that it does show real... more
The first HIV vaccine to be called a success has stood up to scrutiny after further analysis of the data was presented today in Paris, France.
However, the new analysis also confirms that the optimistic claims, first made in September and viewed sceptically at the time, are indeed very modest.
Last month's announcement of success (PDF) was made by researchers from the US Military HIV Research Program (MHRP). They reported that their vaccine reduced the risk of infection by about 31 per cent in a trial in Thailand.
But it was not clear that the vaccine offered any protection because the result was based on very few cases: 51 of 8197 vaccinated individuals became infected with HIV compared with 74 of 8198 unvaccinated people, a difference of just 23.
Bonus data
Today, at the AIDS Vaccine 2009 meeting in Paris, MHRP researchers presented the analysis underlying the result that they announced a month ago, plus two additional analyses of the raw data (PDF).
These new analyses included people who had been excluded from the research results, such as those who did not take the six vaccine shots in the correct order. In neither was the trend statistically significant.
After hearing the new results, Seth Berkley, chief executive of the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative, said, "Certainly, there's some kind of signal there," but added, "It's a modest effect."
He also says that the new results are interesting because they give novel insights into how the vaccine works over time.
Early effect
The risks of infection in the vaccinated group were reduced by around 60 per cent within a year, but by 30 months after vaccination the protective effect was only 36 per cent. This resulted in a 31 per cent figure overall.
"It looked like there's an early effect that wanes with time," said Berkley. "It may be that the vaccine generates only weak antibodies against HIV, and these are only effective early on."
Berkley says that further investigation of the mechanisms by which the vaccine worked would provide powerful new knowledge to guide selection of new, more potent vaccines.The first HIV vaccine to be called a success has stood up to scrutiny after further... more
The Global Micro-Clinic Project and the Organic Health Response have partnered to deliver Micro-Clinics and Organic Farms for HIV+ Kenyans on Mfangano Island on Lake Victoria in Kenya.
This video is about the Ekialo Kiona Center, which will be the hub for micro-clinics to empower Kenyans to prevent and manage HIV/AIDS.
The Ekialo Kiona Center will feature a solar-powered computer lab, library, classrooms, micro-clinic rooms, office, and conference room, with an amphitheater just outside the building. It is scheduled to be completed by World AIDS Day: December 1, 2009.
For more information, please visit http://gmcp.orgThe Global Micro-Clinic Project and the Organic Health Response have partnered to... more
The L.A. AIDS Walk 2009 is coming up oh-so-soon! This annual event raises awareness about HIV/AIDS and collects funds to support the Los Angeles AIDS community and the organizations throughout the city that improve the lives of HIV positive people. The money raised from the AIDS Walk is dispersed to organizations all over the city that provide testing services, prevention education, treatment resources and more. One of the primary benefactors of the walk is AIDS Project Los Angeles, an organization which among other things, advocates for effective and equitable local and national public policy for HIV and AIDS related issues.
As you know, Causecast is excited to be a part of the AIDS Walk. Our team of staff, interns and friends will be out in full force, walking the 10K loop of West L.A. for this amazing cause!
If you haven’t signed up for the walk yet, allow Brandon Trentham to fill you in on what you might be missing on October 18…
You might recognize Brandon from…well, everything. He’s a top male model that’s been featured in tons of major magazines and fashion shows. Hear what he has to say about how his step-father’s battle with Multiple Sclerosis impacted him, and how he has carried his passionate energy on to the AIDS Walk.The L.A. AIDS Walk 2009 is coming up oh-so-soon! This annual event raises awareness... more
Now the world is living with the hopeful but still fragile promise of a possible efficient HIV vaccine, it's ever so important to focus on what should happen exactly when it comes to a fair distribution of this potential lifesaver.Now the world is living with the hopeful but still fragile promise of a possible... more
The retroviruses which gave rise to HIV first evolved around 100 million years ago – about 85 million years earlier than previously thought, a team led by Oxford University scientists have discovered.
The remains of an ancient HIV-like virus have been discovered in the genome of the two-toed sloth. 'Finding the fossilized remains of such a virus in this sloth is an amazing stroke of luck,’ said Dr Aris Katzourakis from Oxford’s Department of Zoology and the Institute for Emergent Infections, James Martin 21st Century School. ‘Because this sloth is so geographically and genetically isolated its genome gives us a window into the ancient past of mammals, their immune systems, and the types of viruses they had to contend with.’
The researchers found evidence of ‘foamy viruses’, a particular kind of retrovirus that resembles the complex lentiviruses, such as HIV and simian retroviruses (SIVs) – as opposed to simple retroviruses that are found throughout the genomic fossil record.
‘In previous work we had found evidence for similar viruses in the genomes of rabbits and lemurs but this new research suggests that the ancestors of complex retroviruses, such as HIV, may have been with us from the very beginnings of mammal evolution,’ said Dr Aris Katzourakis.
Understanding the evolutionary battleground between complex viruses and mammal immune systems could lead to new approaches to combating existing retroviruses, such as HIV. It can also help scientists to decide which viruses that cross species are likely to cause dangerous pandemics – such as swine flu (H1N1) – and which, like bird flu (H5N1) and foamy viruses, cross this species barrier but then never cause pandemics in new mammal populations.The retroviruses which gave rise to HIV first evolved around 100 million years ago –... more
These NSFW but imaginative images and vids are from an anti-AIDS PSA initiative produced by the Swiss Office of Public Health.These NSFW but imaginative images and vids are from an anti-AIDS PSA initiative... more
BANGKOK (AFP) – An experimental AIDS vaccine has for the first time cut the risk of infection in humans in what scientists Thursday called a "breakthrough" in the quarter-century fight against the epidemic.
The vaccine reduced the chance of being infected by a third, researchers announced after the world's largest trial of 16,000 volunteers, carried out by the US Army and Thailand's Ministry of Public Health.
The surprising result comes after years of fruitless attempts by the medical world to find an HIV vaccine, including one trial jab that apparently boosted infection rates.
"It is the first demonstration that a vaccine against HIV can protect against infection," Colonel Jerome Kim of the US military HIV research programme told a news conference in Bangkok via videolinkBANGKOK (AFP) – An experimental AIDS vaccine has for the first time cut the risk of... more
For the first time, an experimental vaccine has prevented infection with the AIDS virus, a watershed event in the deadly epidemic and a surprising result. Recent failures led many scientists to think such a vaccine might never be possible.
The World Health Organization and the U.N. agency UNAIDS said the results "instilled new hope" in the field of HIV vaccine research.
The vaccine — a combination of two previously unsuccessful vaccines — cut the risk of becoming infected with HIV by more than 31 percent in the world's largest AIDS vaccine trial of more than 16,000 volunteers in Thailand, researchers announced Thursday in Bangkok.
Even though the benefit is modest, "it's the first evidence that we could have a safe and effective preventive vaccine," Col. Jerome Kim told The Associated Press. He helped lead the study for the U.S. Army, which sponsored it with the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.For the first time, an experimental vaccine has prevented infection with the AIDS... more
For the first time, an experimental vaccine has prevented infection with the AIDS virus, a watershed event in the deadly epidemic and a surprising result. Recent failures led many scientists to think such a vaccine might never be possible.For the first time, an experimental vaccine has prevented infection with the AIDS... more
The vaccine - a combination of two earlier experimental vaccines - was given to 16,000 people in a joint trial by the Thai government and US military.
It reduced by 31% the volunteers' risk of contracting HIV, the virus that leads to Aids.
The researchers said the results give fresh hope that a safe and effective vaccine may yet be possible.A big step on the fight against AIDS
The vaccine - a combination of two earlier... more
For the first time, an experimental vaccine has prevented infection with the AIDS virus, a watershed event in the deadly epidemic and a surprising result. Recent failures led many scientists to think such a vaccine might never be possible.
Think of what this can do for the world. It will end a great deal of suffering if it truly works. I stay hopeful that this will be a leap closer to ending one of worlds most deadly viruses.
Do you consider this to be a major breakthrough?For the first time, an experimental vaccine has prevented infection with the AIDS... more
Australian scientists have identified another key "reservoir" for HIV - in the brain - posing a new challenge in the search for a way to eradicate the virus from the body.
(NewsMail, 2009, September 24, par.1)
Conventional antiretroviral drugs have become so effective at suppressing the virus inside an infected person's body that there is a prospect of getting rid of it altogether. This effort is seen as a more promising field of research than working to create a HIV vaccine, but it hinges on perfecting techniques to kill off infected cells in the known reservoirs for HIV in the body.
(NewsMail, 2009, September 24, par.2-3)
Melbourne-based Dr Melissa Churchill said HIV was known to hide out in a the thymus and lymph tissues, the gut, spleen, testes, bone marrow and - according to her latest research - in astrocyte cells in the brain.
(NewsMail, 2009, September 24, par.4)
"The astrocytes are basically the support cells - they mop up toxins released from other cells and maintain a really nice environment for the neurons to function," Dr Churchill said of the vital role played by these cells for cognition. "Previously, people weren't sure if we have to actually consider it as a genuine viral reservoir, but it is."
(NewsMail, 2009, September 24, par.5-6)Australian scientists have identified another key "reservoir" for HIV - in the brain -... more
