Tag Archives: HIV/AIDS

Dr. Ramon Torres, a noted HIV/AIDS researcher and former medical director of NYC’s St. Vincent’s AIDS Center, was arrested Wednesday for grand larceny and unlawful practice of medicine without a license. Torres is charged with submitting thousands of dollars of fraudulent Medicare claims and for continuing to treat patients after being suspended last year for drug and alcohol abuse. Torres …

“I have to speak my mind because as a gay man now I have a responsibility to. I sat back too long. When ACT-UP were going in and trying to change the face of AIDS awareness in America because nobody else was doing it, I sat back and did nothing.” – Elton John, expressing guilt over not having taken part …

The Indonesian state of Papua is planning to microchip some residents with HIV in a bid to prevent their transmitting the virus to others. Out of a population of 2.5M, 3000 residents are thought to be HIV positive. Papua is located on the western half of New Guinea. According to an Indonesian doctor assisting in the new law’s preparation, “Some …

Annie Lennox has a new album coming, Songs of Mass Destruction, due on October 2nd. Produced by Glen Ballard, the album includes a feminist/HIV prevention anthem titled, Sing, which features 23 major female solo artists: Madonna, Sarah McLachlan, Celine Dion, Fergie, Faith Hill, Pink, Dido, Gladys Knight, kd lang, Angelique Kidjo, Bonnie Raitt, Shakira, Melissa Etheridge, Anastasia, Joss Stone, KT …

Good news on the HIV front: a new investigational drug, Etravirine (a non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor) has been shown in combination with Prezista (a protease inhibitor) to be very effective against advanced multi-drug resistant HIV. The just-concluded study took place in 18 countries including at 30 sites in the United States. Prezista is already approved for use in the U.S. …

George Bush asked Congress today to double the amount spent fighting AIDS to $30 billion a year, beginning in 2008. In 2003, Bush requested a $15 billion annual allocation, a five-year funding that expires when the new amount would kick in. The 2003 budget remains the largest annual AIDS funding in the world. Critics complain that even the new amount …

Bill Clinton received a check for $1 million yesterday from the proceeds of Vienna’s Life Ball, money that will be used to continue his work to provide low-cost AIDS medications to third world nations. Recently Clinton struck a deal with Indian drugmakers that will allow Thailand to buy meds for a fraction of their normal cost. Earlier this month, the …

I’m a couple days behind on this, but AIDS Walk New York raised a record $6.8 million on Sunday, with the proceeds headed for GMHC and over 50 other HIV/AIDS organizations. Celebrities taking part included Cyndi Lauper, Whoopi Goldberg, Alan Cumming, T.R. Knight, and Lance Bass. A massive crowd of 45,000 walked this year, also a new record.

National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases head Anthony Fauci has released the results of a study which suggests that new HIV drugs from Merck and Roche may “cure” HIV in patients who have very low levels of the virus, provided those patients have already been treated “early and faithfully” with over 7 years of combination drug therapy. Patients are …

Today is the International Day Against Homophobia. In observance of the occasion, the Human Rights Watch has listed five world leaders to its Hall Of Shame because of their anti-gay actions in the last year: 1. Pope Benedict XVI: for undermining families. The leader of the Holy See has gone well beyond expressing the Church’s theological views on homosexuality. 2. …

In another “third strike” case, a Texas man who videotaped sexual encounters with 131 young men has been sentenced to life in prison for attempting to seduce a 15 year old boy. The man is HIV positive and allegedly never told any of his partners, most of whom with he had bareback sex. The attempted statutory rape charge was the …

For the first time, Brazil will ignore patent laws and manufacture a generic version of an HIV medication, citing the World Trade Organization’s “compulsory license” mechanism that allows a country to bypass a drug patent in a health emergency or if the manufacturer uses abusive pricing. The medication is Merck’s Sustiva, a powerful non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor, which Merck offered …

German researchers have identified a peptide that blocks HIV and have synthesized a variant that is 100 times more potent than the natural peptide. The synthetic version has been tested safely on animals and human trials are set to begin later this year. This peptide could obviate existing HIV drugs as it appears to work equally well on all strains …

Watson Pharmaceuticals has discontinued production of its AIDS-related wasting drug, the anabolic steroid nandrolone decanoate (brand name Deca-Durabolin), citing diminished availability of the medication’s active ingredient. Some AIDS activists are protesting the move, claiming that Watson has discontinued Deca in order to focus on their recently acquired license to manufacture a generic version of Oxandrin, another anti-wasting drug. In some …

“Oopsie. Here’s your foreskin back. Keep it in a warm dry place. We’ll be happy to take it out of your hands later, if you are among the millions suffering from ESPS (Excessive Sexual Pleasure Syndrome.)” The New York Department of Health issued a statement today saying that the New York Times had “misrepresented” its response to the recent UN/WHO …

In response to the recent endorsement by the World Health Organization, the New York City Department of Health is also planning to promote circumcision for men at risk for HIV, asking community groups AND gay rights organizations to discuss the procedure with their members. This, despite WHO’s own statement that the procedure holds little value for gay men who practice …

AIDS Healthcare Foundation filed suit against the state of California yesterday, accusing the state of ignoring California law and refusing to provide care for HIV/AIDS patients. You may recall that AHF recently sued Pfizer, claiming that the pharmaceutical giant was promoting unsafe sex via its Viagra advertising. In the latest suit, AHF says that California is being deliberately slow to …

Australian news outlets are abuzz with the arrest of a 48-year old man who had regularly been holding HIV “conversion parties” in his Melbourne home. I’ve heard of such parties in NYC and SF, in which the bizarre, unthinkable, unthinking world of “bug chasers” is celebrated, and HIV-infected men proudly label themselves as “breeders”, happily available to give “the gift” …

The United Nations’ health agencies recommended today that heterosexual men undergo circumcision, citing “compelling” evidence that the procedure may reduce their odds of contracting HIV by up to 60%, while also noting that the procedure has little benefit for men who have sex with men. UNAIDS and the World Health Organization said that up to 5.7 million new cases could …

“ACT UP is the most successful grass roots organization that ever lived. Period. There never was, never has been one more successful that has achieved as much as we. We did it before. We can do it again. But to be successful, activism must be practiced every day. By a lot of people. It made us proud once. It united …