hiv
Free preventive care under the ACA is under threat again
By Paul Shafer, Boston University and Kristefer Stojanovski, Tulane University Many Americans breathed a sigh of relief when the U.S. Supreme Court left the Affordable Care Act in place following the law’s third major legal challenge in June 2021. This decision left widely supported policies in place, like ensuring coverage regardless of preexisting conditions, coverage […]
HIV preventive care is supposed to be free in the US. So, why are some patients still paying?
Anthony Cantu, 31, counsels patients at a San Antonio health clinic about a daily pill shown to prevent HIV infection. Last summer, he started taking the medication himself, an approach called preexposure prophylaxis, better known as PrEP. The regimen requires laboratory tests every three months to ensure the powerful drug does not harm his kidneys […]
HIV/AIDS vaccine: Why don’t we have one after 37 years, when we have several for COVID-19 after a few months?
By Ronald C. Desrosiers, University of Miami Smallpox has been eradicated from the face of the Earth following a highly effective, worldwide vaccination campaign. Paralytic poliomyelitis is no longer a problem in the U.S. because of development and use of effective vaccines against the poliovirus. In current times, millions of lives have been saved because […]
Nurses on the front lines: A history of heroism from Florence Nightingale to coronavirus
Nurses are heroes of the COVID-19 crisis. May 12 was International Nurses Day, which commemorates the birthday of Florence Nightingale, the first “professional nurse.” The World Health Organization also named this year the “Year of the Nurse” in honor of Nightingale’s 200th birthday. To nurses everywhere, this day and this year have great significance. Nurses, […]
Trump the performer, and his inadequacy to the moment
The thought began with some armchair political speculation a few weeks back: President Trump was putting Vice President Mike Pence in charge of the administration’s coronavirus efforts. I had just recently mentioned in a column an awful HIV outbreak in Indiana that occurred under Pence’s watch, his response to which did not help matters. Politico […]
End HIV stigma and discrimination, and then we can end HIV
It’s a weird word to use, but in many ways I’m lucky — lucky because I only had to watch one friend die as his HIV progressed to AIDS. It was the early 2000s, and I was still a teenager. I wasn’t out yet. I was so angry when Billy died because I didn’t understand. […]
A new battle between insurers and big pharma is costing sick people thousands
Abbey Haudenshild knew something was wrong when she learned she owed her pharmacy nearly $8,000. On the upside, it’s cheaper than the combined $32,000 list price — monthly — on the medication for her sons, Weston, 1, and Parker, 4. The boys have hemophilia, a condition that hinders their blood’s ability to clot. The potential […]