AIDSWEEKLY Plus; Monday, November 19, 2007
Staff Medical Writers

In a collusion of opinion and fact, this first-ever perception audit also found that 86 percent of adults in the United States, UK, France, Russia, China, India, Brazil, Mexico and South Africa believe stigma and shame to be a contributor to the spread of HIV. Seventy-six percent report lack of access to treatment to be a problem as well.

"Today, more than 25 years after the emergence of the disease, it is startling to learn that facts about HIV/AIDS are still a guessing game for much of the world and that many are still in the dark about the undeniable reality that HIV/AIDS shockingly remains a top global killer," said Nancy Mahon, executive director of the M-A-C AIDS Fund. "Social stigmas that plagued us then are still limiting progress now. Understanding the insights from this new survey, however, is what will help take us to the next level of policy, prevention and care in the fight against AIDS."

To probe the "next level" in the solution to the global HIV/AIDS crisis, the MAC AIDS Fund gathered a group of policy experts, grassroots activists and fundraisers this morning in New York for a roundtable discussion, moderated by William Holstein, a business journalist who writes for the New York Times and other top publications and is president of the Overseas Press Club Foundation. The six-member panel -- including Dr. Thomas Kenyon, Principal Deputy Coordinator and Chief Medical Officer in the Office of the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator; Jennifer Kates, vice president and director of HIV policy for the Kaiser Family Foundation; Dr. Geeta Rao Gupta, president of the International Center for Research on Women; Dr. Marsha Martin, director for HIV/AIDS programs in the Oakland, Calif. mayor's office and a former HIV/AIDS administrator for the Washington, D.C. Department of Health; Anthony Rapp, star of Broadway musical and motion picture Rent; and Mahon -- focused their discussion on three issue areas: access to treatment, stigma and shame and women.

"As we examine the findings of the MAC AIDS Fund survey, it is important to keep the broader context in mind -- that only one in five people who needed treatment in 2006 received it; that countless people living with HIV have suffered violations of their basic human rights because of their status; and that today more women than ever before are living with HIV," said Dr. Gupta. "It is only within that context that we can truly understand the devastating impact of the misperceptions that still persist, as well as benefits that can be achieved through accurate information."

"HIV and AIDS is an issue that goes beyond the medical community, beyond even the policy community. It is a disease that has permeated the very social and cultural fabric of our lives," said Rapp. "Today's survey from the MAC AIDS Fund is helping to tell a personal story and give a voice to the people who are living with the disease every day."

In addition to the panelists, other HIV/AIDS activists, community leaders and business leaders were on hand at the roundtable event.

John Demsey, Group President for the Estee Lauder Companies and Chairman of the MAC AIDS Fund said, "Today's survey release and discussion is a testament to the position that the MAC AIDS Fund has taken in the fight against HIV and AIDS -- challenging the status quo of the arena by asking tough honest questions and always proposing new approaches to help find a solution."

Keywords: HIV/AIDS, AIDS, Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome, HIV, Human Immunodeficiency Virus, Virology, M-A-C Aids Fund.

This article was prepared by AIDS Weekly editors from staff and other reports.

2007-11-19
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