After watching CBS 60 Minutes that aired on December 12, I am a man living with AIDS who is now more concerned with the humanity of people than I have ever been before. The television show told us of a man, Dr. Don Francis, who works with a very large corporation called Genentech , located in the San Francisco Bay Area
Last Tuesday, December 19, Hawaii Governor Ben Cayetano (D) approved new rules regarding medical marijuana. The regulations are the result of a law passed by the state Legislature and signed by Cayetano this past June. The rules will take effect on December 28. Under the new rules, certified patients will be allowed to
People hold various beliefs about the significance of HIV in their lives, but it has been argued that it is always helpful to know your own status, especially if you can do so without identifying yourself. Beginning on January 8, the Contra Costa Public Health AIDS program will offer this opportunity. Free and anonymou
In last week s Bay Area Reporter, we began to say goodbye to Y2K by highlighting some of the year s top local news stories for the LGBT community. As the summer of 2000 unfolded, there were continued surprises as the community forged ahead in both protest and progress. July The month was christened by an announcement a
It s the end of another year, and what a year it was. The year 2000 really turned out to be quite remarkable in spite of hyped-up expectations that no other occurrence could possibly fulfill. Technically, last year wasn t yet the beginning of the new century, but it sure seemed that way, from Y2K paranoia and the eerie
Helping others during the holidays can encompass many things, and one local nonprofit organization wants people to know that their clients could use some holiday gifts. Dolores Street Community Services, which operates a homeless shelter for working poor Latino men, the Richard M. Cohen Residence for people living with
Coming up with a reasonable estimate of how many new HIV infections are taking place in San Francisco each year seems to have become a political hot potato for the city s Department of Public Health and the University of California, San Francisco s AIDS Research Institute. Although DPH and ARI co-hosted a secret meetin
A new study aimed at treating hepatitis C is suggesting that speeding up a virus s ability to mutate could ultimately cause the virus to overmutate and die off. University of California, San Francisco researchers have discovered that one of the few drugs available to treat hepatitis C, ribavirin, works by overwhelming
South African Minister of Health Dr. Manto Tshabalala-Msimang, chose World AIDS Day (December 1) to officially confirm the long-awaited deal with U.S. pharmaceutical giant, Pfizer . It was announced that the U.S. company will supply government hospitals and clinics in South Africa with Fluconazole (Diflucan) free o
President Clinton marked World AIDS Day with a flurry of activity in Washington, D.C. On the calendar for December 1 was a visit to the Whitman-Walker Clinic to speak with people living with HIV, an address at Howard University, release of an international blueprint on fighting AIDS by the National Institutes of Health
What a difference a declared HIV infection surge makes. In May 1999, Delaware-based DuPont Pharmaceuticals and the city of San Francisco announced amid much fanfare a $5 million joint grant to be used for HIV prevention. As the Bay Area Reporter goes to press this week, not one cent of that money has been received or p
HellBall 2000, the fifth annual AIDS Halloween fundraiser organized by the nonprofit New Heritage Foundation, raised $22,500 this year for the Stop AIDS Project. It will help in the development of all our HIV prevention programs, said Brian Byrdsong, development director for the Stop AIDS Project. Overall, the event wa
HIV was represented in much of its diversity on Friday, December 1, as the National AIDS Memorial Grove hosted its annual ceremony and reception to honor those lost and to celebrate the commitment of many who continue to help people in need. A packed tent of more than 250 people occupied the green oasis nestled within
World AIDS Day 2000 has come and gone. December 1 is the day of the year someone picked to mark the epidemic by remembering those lost to AIDS, and it has passed once again without much notice. There was a smattering of events held by AIDS service organizations here and there, but most of the attention to the day was i
On Monday, November 27, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to decide whether medical marijuana can be provided to patients who demonstrate medical necessity. Cannabis distribution -- for medicinal or any other reason -- is currently illegal under federal laws. Many patients use the herb to relieve loss of appetite related t
Recently, I had several conversations with television producers from CBS 60 Minutes and A&E s Investigative Reports programs. Both networks are planning major AIDS stories to be aired in coming weeks. Seems that both news teams have come to the same conclusion: You thought AIDS was over? Well think again, it s not.
This year s 13th annual World AIDS Day theme is a fitting one: AIDS: All Men--Make a Difference. The theme s goal is to encourage all men -- including men who have sex with men -- to increase their awareness about the risk of HIV/AIDS infection for themselves, their partners, and their families and to use their influen
Africa is getting ready to commemorate yet another World AIDS Day -- next Friday, December 1 -- but this continent has not had much success in its battle against the disease, with over 6,000 AIDS-related deaths each day -- five every hour in Zimbabwe and 18 per hour in Kenya . Last year alon
After five years of development, Grace Cathedral Episcopal Church will celebrate the dedication of the Interfaith AIDS Memorial Chapel on Thursday, November 30. Bishop William Swing will consecrate the altar, with representatives from a variety of faiths attending. Officials said that Grace Cathedral remembers those wh
The FDA held an advisory committee hearing on October 16 to discuss the evaluation of immune-based therapies (IBTs). This meeting was to be informational and not focused on any one specific product, educating the members of the committee with respect to IBTs. There was clearly no decision made to accept any other surro
The following is an occasional column compiled by the AIDS Legal Referral Panel on issues of concern to people living with AIDS. Dear AIDS Legal Referral Panel, I stopped working in 1992, when I was diagnosed with AIDS and my doctors gave me less than two years to live. I m still here. Eight years ago, I had perfect cr
A kiss is just a kiss, says the old song lyric, but it also can be a way that infections are transmitted. Don t kiss me, I have a cold, starts to become a common phrase about this time of the year. And mono -- mononucleosis, the malaise of teenagers -- is known as the kissing disease. Now add human herpes virus 8 (HHV
The AIDS dissident group ACT UP/San Francisco was recently dealt two blows: a court decision barring its members from the vicinity of the AIDS service organization Project Inform, and the beginning of a criminal trial for spraying Silly String on Department of Public Health Director Dr. Mitchell Katz. San Francisco Sup
It may come as no surprise that the federal government is spending a disproportionate amount of funding trying to curb the spread of HIV among heterosexuals. But given the fact that rates of HIV infection among heterosexuals appear to be falling at a time when infection rates among gay and bisexual men are either sta
Living with HIV in the year 2000 has become a chronic condition for most people due to effective antiviral therapies. Some studies have shown that people who do not maintain viral control with the powerful drugs can stay relatively healthy and their immune systems may remain somewhat functional for years. But other inf
Danny has a new kidney. A year ago Danny was so depressed and fed up with kidney dialysis that he was considering stopping therapy and giving up. Such decisions are all too common among long-term kidney sufferers. These days Danny doesn t need dialysis; his newly transplanted kidney is humming along nicely and Danny is
Edwin Cameron, one of South Africa s most respected judges who has gone public with his homosexuality, will not apologize for his strong criticism of President Thabo Mbeki who has been flirting with dissident AIDS scientists. I was aware of what I was doing, and feel that I spoke within principled boundaries, Judge Cam
The popularity of South Africa s president, Thabo Mbeki, seems to be in a sharp decline. A recent poll revealed that support for President Mbeki, who succeeded Nelson Mandela in June 1999, had dropped from 71 percent in May to around 50 percent in August among those who believe he is doing a reasonable or good job.
The South African Treatment Action Campaign has illegally imported 3,000 Biozole capsules, the generic equivalent of Pfizer s Fluconazole used for infections associated with HIV. The capsules were bought from Thailand and cost 1.78 rand each (one U.S. dollar equals 7.5 South African rands). The U.S. pharmaceutical
Halloween is traditionally a time for ghosts and ghouls. This year in Washington, Congress has co-opted the zombiefied state of the undead it refuses to go home. It is wrangling with the White House over the last pieces of federal spending. Funding for AIDS programs is part of the mix, and there is still a glimmer of
How many lawyers does it take to protect the rights of people with AIDS and HIV? asks the AIDS Legal Referral Panel, which promptly answers the question with the figure, 1,333, in an announcement about its anniversary event this week. It s hard to believe ALRP is in its 18th year, protecting the rights of people who f
The scientific evidence on nonoxynol-9 as an HIV prevention strategy is now conclusive and significant, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta announced on August 4 in a widely distributed Dear Colleague letter. Anyone currently using N-9 as a microbicide to protect themselves from HIV transmission
In the escalating fight for proper and timely HIV information and services, the media and health officials have painted a debate that appears to be two-sided: in one corner are the AIDS dissidents, who simply refuse to believe in HIV, and on the other side is the AIDS establishment, which cannot possibly be effective w
The first speak-out on HIV and hepatitis C in prison, A Standard of Care that is Killing Prisoners, will be held on Thursday, November 2, at St. Paulus Church, 930 Gough Street (between Turk and Eddy) in San Francisco. Sponsored by the HIV in Prison Committee of California Prison Focus, the evening begins at 6:30 p.m.
A recent study published in the Journal of American Medical Association has shown that metformin, a drug manufactured by Bristol-Myers Squibb , may have benefits in lowering insulin resistance and reducing abdominal fat in people with HIV, therefore reducing their risk of cardiovascular disease. Side effects were f
U.S.-based scientist, David Rasnick, a leading AIDS dissident, has challenged South Africa s Dr. Costa Gazi to a potentially lethal public experiment. In a letter addressed to a South African newspaper, the Mail & Guardian, Rasnick said, On national or international television I will be treated with purified, infec
On Tuesday, October 17, a spokesman for South African President Thabo Mbeki said that Mbeki would scale down his involvement in the ongoing national debate about whether HIV causes AIDS. This past spring, Mbeki unleashed a firestorm of controversy when he suggested that HIV might not be the sole and sufficient cause of
Mayor Willie Brown announced this week that he was appointing longtime AIDS activist, lobbyist, and policy expert Mike Shriver to the position of special adviser to the mayor on HIV/AIDS policy. I m really excited about it, Shriver said of his appointment to the job first held by the late Dick Pabich, and vacated by Pa
Depending on who you listen to, it was either all about process versus substance at last week s regular meeting of the San Francisco Department of Public Health s HIV Prevention Planning Council, or it was all about process versus lack of substance. Of the five items on the Thursday, October 12 agenda for the group app
The California Department of Corrections tried its hardest to be presentable last Wednesday, October 11, when state legislators descended upon Valley State Prison for Women to conduct a groundbreaking hearing on alleged medical abuse and neglect endured by women inside. The prison guards were polite and welcoming. The
The Richard M. Cohen residence, a program of Dolores Street Community Services, needs volunteers to contribute to the agency s community of healing. The facility is a 10-bed, 24-hour assisted-living residence for men and women living with disabling AIDS. Bob Nelson, DSCS executive director, said volunteers are needed t
South African President Thabo Mbeki is becoming obsessed with what he perceives to be a foreign conspiracy surrounding the AIDS epidemic that claims at least 6,000 lives every day on this continent alone. President Mbeki, who has been flirting with American and other dissident scientists for quite some time, recently a
A reauthorized Ryan White CARE Act, which provides most federal funding for AIDS services, unanimously passed both houses of Congress last Thursday, October 5. Earlier in the week a conference resolved differences between House and Senate versions of the bill. President Clinton s signature is assured but timing will de
Whether you re a biker or a business executive, this is the month to show your support for Shanti. This Sunday, October 15, over 200 motorcyclists from all over the Bay Area plan to burn some rubber for Shanti from San Francisco to the Russian River in the Fourth Annual Ride for Life. And on Thursday evening, October 1
The Food and Drug Administration will hold a long awaited advisory panel on immune-based therapies (IBT) for HIV this Monday, October 16, in Gaithersburg, Maryland. The FDA s official correspondence states: The agency is seeking advice about what guidance to provide sponsors developing immunomodulatory products for thi
It s time for a relaxing afternoon of good food and drink, all for a good cause. Bob O Halloran and Bill Boeddiker, owners of the Parker House Guest House, will host their third annual fall benefit luncheon in their gardens this Saturday, October 14, to benefit the AIDS Emergency Fund. The luncheon -- also hosted by Su
For the second time in six months, Blue Cross of California has informed its members they ll soon be paying higher premiums and receiving less healthcare coverage from the state s largest private health insurance agency. Although the changes affect all members, it is the chronic and terminally ill, those least able to
There has been nothing above normal in the rates of rectal gonorrhea infection among men who sex with men. This statement was made to the Bay Area Reporter last week by Dr. Gwen Hammer, epidemiologist at the San Francisco Department of Public Health. Her announcement came on September 26, a day after DPH sent out its m
What if the way to control HIV infection is another disease? That was one of the startling implications of discoveries made by Dr. George Watt in Thailand . His findings were published in the August 5 issue of the medical journal the Lancet and he discussed them at a September 21 meeting at the National Institutes of
Hoping to undercut the economic strength of a small band of HIV/AIDS denialists using the name ACT UP/San Francisco, local activists have called for a boycott of the group s Market Street medical marijuana dispensary. ACT UP/San Francisco is blocking access to life-saving information, and we re going to hold them accou
Earlier this month, San Francisco Department of Public Health director Dr. Mitch Katz put longtime associate Jimmy Loyce in charge of a resurrected AIDS office. Katz s move was part of yet another reshuffling of his department as he struggles to contend with mounting evidence of a resurgence in HIV transmissions among
Recently, people with HIV have noticed a fairly continuous stream of hype coming from a company called Advanced Viral Research Corporation about its HIV/AIDS drug, Reticulose or Product-R. Advanced Viral Research Corporation claims that the drug, a peptide-nucleic acid and subcutaneous injectable, may help fight HIV, p
Everybody loves a good sidewalk sale, and it s even better to know that one can rummage for a worthy cause. This weekend provides the public an opportunity to shop without guilt, as Redwood City s AIDS Community Research Consortium has announced its first-ever community bazaar to benefit ACRC s programs and services.
Oprah would probably cope with it, and Rosie wouldn t bat an eyelash, but programming officials at the local ABC/Disney television affiliate are apparently squeamish about men with bare chests and about a transgender with breasts. KGO Channel 7 has rejected a new federally-sponsored HIV Stops With Me commercial featuri
The Reverend Jesse Jackson Sr. called for the end of public health policies that treat HIV differently than other diseases. His remarks came in a keynote address to the National Conference on Correctional Health Care, on Monday, September 11, in St. Louis. Should there be mandatory HIV testing of prisoners upon enterin
Go away. I cannot take that rubbish any longer. Can you believe it? ... I have never in my life heard such rubbish, John Robbie, a host on 702 Talk Radio, told South African Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang after she repeatedly refused to spell out whether she believed HIV causes AIDS. The minister was invited
For the past 15 years, in the interest of protecting the nation s blood supply, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has been more stringent in screening prospective gay blood donors than the U.S. military is in screening prospective gay recruits to the armed services. Since 1985, healthy citizens are asked, and are e
On May 1, White House spokesman Joe Lockhart acknowledged a report from the Central Intelligence Agency that was presented to the National Security Council that states that AIDS and other infectious diseases will decimate populations all over the world and pose a number of problems for the United States . Lockha
For years, men and women have been using sexual lubricants and pre-lubed condoms containing a spermicidal detergent called nonoxynol-9 (N-9) believing that they are protecting themselves from HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases. Now, it appears that they have been wrong. Dead wrong. And thus far, no public or p
Dr. Robert Redfield, director of clinical research at the Institute of Human Virology in Baltimore, describes his work at IHV as exploiting the human body for therapeutic potential. Toward this end, he and others are currently investigating three main areas with respect to HIV. First, can host directed mechanisms of im
Dr. Donald Abrams had all of the exuberance of a kid showing off a new toy as he explained his research on medical marijuana. The poster he presented at the recent 13th International Conference on AIDS in Durban, South Africa , Short-term effects of cannabinoids on HIV-1 viral load, was the culmination of years of str
On Tuesday, August 29, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against the provision of medical marijuana to California patients whose doctors recommend the herb. The 7-1 decision came as the result of an emergency request from the Clinton administration asking the court to postpone allowing a decision by U.S. District Judge Char
The male rectal gonorrhea rates for July have been omitted from the Department of Public Health s monthly sexually transmitted disease report, despite the fact that these rates were just used as evidence of an HIV surge in San Francisco. Talk about bad timing. A couple of weeks ago, when DPH representatives appeared be
Get out your abacus, and follow along, if you can. There s some fancy math going on here. If you times the percentage of new infections by the size of the population, you learn how many people are newly infected in any year, Health Director Dr. Mitch Katz posited earlier this month. The numbers in our presentation are
Last Thursday, August 24, nearly 100 people gathered to hear Christine Maggiore and Robin Scovill present their report from South Africa , which hosted the 13th International Conference on AIDS in Durban last month. The forum was sponsored by HIV dissident groups ACT UP/San Francisco and HEAL. Maggiore, who was pro
Speed use is once again in the news. The recent Department of Public Health statistics on increasing HIV infections in gay men is causing concern that speed may be at least partially the cause of the rising infection rate. The data shows that the increase is correlated to the rising infections in gay men who are IVDU u
Almost 20 years ago, members of the queer community battled the system as their brothers became targets of discrimination such as proposed AIDS quarantines and mandatory testing. Within the last few years -- when names reporting and criminalization earned the HIV spotlight -- lesbian , gay, bisexual, and transgender pe
Democrats are eager to take back control of the House this fall, and if they succeed, Representative Sherrod Brown of Ohio will be a very powerful man. As ranking member of the House Commerce Committee s Health and Environment Subcommittee, Brown is in line to become chair if the Democrats succeed in winning a majority
In their recent publication, Response to Updated Estimates of HIV Infection in San Francisco, 2000, the San Francisco Department of Public Health and the AIDS Research Institute of the University of California, San Francisco noted that while some gay and bisexual men have eliminated high-risk behavior from their lives,
It s an old taboo. Anal intercourse, that much-maligned yet inexorably relished act, is not widely considered a topic for polite dinner conversation. As a practical matter, it involves the insertion of an adult male s penis into the rectum of another adult. The sexual act has been practiced not only among gay men the w
Following the recent Department of Public Health disclosure that new HIV infection rates were on the rise in men having sex with men in San Francisco, Survive AIDS met last Tuesday, August 8 and invited DPH investigator, Dr. Willi McFarland, to present data to our general body membership. In attendance was a full house
After nearly 20 years of making condoms every time the centerpiece of HIV prevention planning in San Francisco, and in light of controversial new estimates that HIV infections among gay men have increased at least 50 percent in the last three years, local health officials appear poised to finally embrace the realities
Gay drama took on a whole new meaning over the past few months, as the HIV/AIDS organization Project Inform fought its legal battle in San Francisco Superior Court to keep ACT UP/San Francisco members away from its staff and public gatherings. The civil hearing against ACT UP/SF brimmed with controversy, and the testim
On Monday, July 31, the opening day of the Republican National Convention in Philadelphia, members of ACT UP/Philadelphia dropped a giant 30 by 75 foot banner from a highly visible location on a downtown billboard. The action took place because activists are demanding that presumed GOP nominee George W. Bush take a sta
I recently found out that my friend has HIV. He contracted it from his boyfriend. They have been together for about two and a half years now. His boyfriend - and I use the term loosely - withheld that he was HIV-positive. Even when asked his status, he denied it. Now my friend has it and he is only 24; his boyfriend is
Birds do it, bees do it ... Everybody is doing it, said Vince Gaither flatly. What s everybody doing that has San Francisco s HIV and gay communities in a subdued state of soul-searching turmoil? According to Gaither and others with intimate knowledge of the phenomenon, they re barebacking -- fucking guys, or getting f
It all happened by mistake. An HIV-positive man from Berlin made headlines a few years ago because of a real life experience he had with his HIV medications. He had a bout of hepatitis and had to stop his HIV drugs because of toxicity. During his interruption his virus levels dropped significantly for 18 months. His T-
After using his line-item veto to cut a billion or so dollars from the budget passed by the California Legislature for fiscal 2000-01, Governor Gray Davis signed the $99.4 billion spending plan last Friday, June 30. Most of the money blue-penciled out of the budget was said to represent pork, or pet project spending pu
Sensational headlines circled the globe last Friday, June 30. S.F. HIV Rate Surges; alarming incidence of new infections raises fears of scourge to come, exclaimed the San Francisco Chronicle. New HIV infections soar in San Francisco, declared the Reuters new service. The percentage of new HIV cases in The City almost
Last year around this time, my health was once again on the slide. I was often sick with sinusitis and infections; my skin was falling apart. I decided to try and give the old antiviral approach a strong, new effort. The idea was to combine as many new HIV drugs that I could get my hands on. I had heard that Abbott s e
The Fourth International Workshop on HIV Drug Resistance and Treatment Strategies held in Sitges, Spain June 12-16 ended with announcements from several pharmaceutical and testing companies about new developments. The workshop brings together 250 of the world s top experts on HIV resistance for a four-day closed meetin
As the Black Death raged through Tuscany during the Middle Ages, small city-states warring over land would sometimes use large wooden catapults to deliver the plague-ridden carcasses of old mules high over the stone walls encircling their rival towns and deep into the midst of its populace. Here in California in the 21
Getting tested for HIV can be one of the most difficult and traumatic decisions anyone has to make. But new tests have joined the ranks of high technology and speed, making the wait for results quicker, sometimes within a few minutes. With new rapid tests, people can be offered treatment immediately upon finding out re
In the human body there are two main areas that directly control how the body acts and reacts, the circulatory system and the central nervous system. It s much easier to understand the circulatory system than it is the central nervous system. In the circulatory system our lungs absorb oxygen which is pumped through the
When Governor Gray Davis released his proposed budget last month for fiscal 2000-2001, AIDS advocates from throughout California were frustrated at the dearth of new spending to combat the disease particularly in light of the state s anticipated $12.3 billion surplus. While Davis proposed spending $2.4 million more f
When a government panel charged with slowing the spread of HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, puts out a statement saying that HIV causes AIDS, on the surface it may appear to be an exercise in redundancy. Most AIDS experts on a local level have for years simply ignored so-called HIV dissidents in the hope that in time t
When the AIDS organization Project Inform recently decided to go to the mat with ACT UP/San Francisco -- obtaining temporary restraining orders against five members of the HIV/AIDS dissident group, and then pressing criminal assault and trespassing charges against four of the same individuals -- Project Inform and its
Doctors offices are full of peculiar people these days. Look around and a typical waiting room may have several primed and pressed business types, not appearing like they are seeking health care appointments at all. Made-up and hair-sprayed with expensive clothing and forced smiles, they check their day planners and ta
After years of steady increases well above Bay Area s rising cost of living, San Francisco AIDS Foundation Executive Director Patricia L. Christen s annual salary as leader of the city s largest AIDS service organization rose by only about 2.3 percent in fiscal year 1998-99, according to the ASO s federal Internal Reve
From Botswana to the Bay Area, the 17th International AIDS Candlelight Memorial and Mobilization will be held this Sunday, May 21 in over 450 communities around the world. Rudy Galindo, winner of the 1996 men s title at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, will march in San Francisco s event, which begins at 8 p.m. a
It has been a familiar scenario in HIV/AIDS care for too long: lazy providers do not follow guidelines for testing, counseling, and follow-up care, and the state steps in to make doctor protocol easier at the expense of patient confidentiality and consent. In California, current law requires prenatal counseling and an
Arrest warrants were issued Monday, May 15 by the San Francisco Superior Court for four members of the local AIDS dissident group ACT UP/San Francisco. The four David Pasquarelli, Andrea Lindsay, Jason Todd Swindell, and Michael Bellefountaine are each being charged by the district attorney with one misdemeanor cha
I just returned from a three-week trip to Chile . From San Francisco, I have been running a program that supplies AIDS medications to an organization there for the past two years. According to UNAIDS at the end of 1999, an estimated 1.7 million people in Latin America and the Caribbean were infected with HIV/AIDS; of t
The recent news out of South Africa regarding President Thabo Mbeki s appointment of several AIDS dissidents to his national advisory council was disheartening, to say the least. The AIDS denialists compose about half of the 33-member panel, which virtually assures that discussions will be prone to deadlock. The proble
Frustrated HIV dissidents have long sought official recognition of their belief that HIV does not cause AIDS, and now it appears that they have found a receptive audience in South Africa , a country of 44 million people where one in 10 is infected with the human immunodeficiency virus. South African President Thabo
Two years ago, the big news out of the biannual international conference on AIDS in Geneva was that antiretrovirals, while having an enormous impact on extending life and decreasing morbidity (sickness), would unlikely ever eradicate HIV and moreover, were themselves problematic in terms of side effects. At the same ti
It seems that the HIV community is abuzz with rumors and discussions about the possibility of stopping one s drugs - taking a holiday from the meds, and then resuming treatment. Strategic drug interruption, as it is called by the experts, was the popular topic at a joint Project Inform and Survive AIDS community forum
Well, it s over. The Millennium March on Washington came and went last weekend, and while, by most published accounts, the celebration was enjoyable for the hundreds of thousands of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender folks who attended, from where we observed it over C-SPAN, the rally seemed to be one long speech
People living with HIV know all too well the mistrust directed at their positive status. In some states, government suspicion comes in the form of mandatory partner notification laws and making sex without disclosing one s status a felony. But one universal prejudice HIV-positive people face is widespread disapproval i
This Saturday, May 6, medical marijuana advocates, proponents of industrial hemp, opponents of the government s war on drugs, and those who simply enjoy partaking of the cannabis plant will gather in cities throughout the U.S. and the world for the Millennium Marijuana March. Locally, participants will gather at San Fr
Bill Barnes resigned his position as the Mayor Willie Brown s second advisor on HIV/AIDS, effective May 1, and has taken a job as program manager with the Neighborhood Parks Council, a nonprofit association representing the interests of 70 park groups citywide. Meanwhile, Dana Van Gorder, who left his part-time positio
An increasing number of HIV-focused medical groups and individual physicians throughout California are quitting health maintenance organization networks because of low financial reimbursement, forcing people with HIV and AIDS to find new physicians less experienced with the illnesses associated with the virus. Of those
Several hundred AIDS activists joined environmentalists, labor union members, human rights advocates, and a host of others in Washington, D.C. this week for a series of protests against the policies of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, both of which held their annual meetings there starting Sunday, Ap
There it is, oblivious to your presence, yet unavoidably filling the room. Demanding your attention like the proverbial pink elephant. It s baaaack. No, it s not a poltergeist, it s the future. And while nobody has any guarantees, you find yourself weighing your options. Longing, perhaps, to feel more productive, to ma
About halfway through an educational forum on treatment options for people with HIV and AIDS on Monday evening, April 17, Todd Swindell, David Pasquarelli, Michael Bellefountaine, Ronnie Burke, and several other members of ACT UP/San Francisco suddenly burst into the room, shouting, spitting, and throwing handfuls of h
Diarrhea. Everyone has experienced this most unpleasant of moments at least once in his or her life. People surviving AIDS often have recurring diarrhea that is hard to control and irritating, affecting quality of life. Today, diarrhea seems to be more prevalent because it is mostly a side effect of many of the medicat
A San Francisco community HIV forum to discuss the new structured treatment interruption strategy for people taking HIV treatment regimens turned violent Monday evening when members of ACT UP/San Francisco stormed the meeting, threw rock-hard pills indiscriminately into the audience, and injured a Project Inform staffe
Was it an April Fools Day joke, or was ACT UP/San Francisco actually apologizing to those who have become ill or died because they accepted our advice to reject scientifically proven treatments as poisons, among other things? A Public Apology: AIDS Isn t Over, read the brightly colored leaflets that began appearing on
The San Francisco Department of Public Health currently is seeking new members for its HIV Prevention Planning Council. The HPPC is a city-chartered advisory group to DPH formed in response to a 1994 mandate from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Currently, there are 24 members of the HPPC, though the gro
Your numbers are up and down, your body may be resisting your meds, you would never consider breaking from your treatment, you ve already stopped and your blood doesn t notice. There s a category for all persons on HIV therapies, and every last one of them is encouraged to attend Stopping and Starting HIV Treatment, a
Last Tuesday, March 29, the Santa Cruz City Council voted unanimously to approve an ordinance that will allow patients to grow and use medicinal cannabis. The new law is expected to take effect next month. The ordinance -- modeled after a similar Oakland law -- allows persons with HIV disease, loss of appetite, side ef
ACT UP/San Francisco member Steve Huggins said he doesn t remember whether he had heard that ACT UP/Golden Gate was changing its name to Survive AIDS when he registered the Internet domain name, www.surviveaids.com two weeks ago. I don t remember where the idea came from, he said, suggesting that it was a coincidence.
There certainly has been a lot of confusion lately among HIVers and PWAs about the best way to test one s virus to see which drugs would most likely work. In the last few years two tests, genotype and phenotype, have emerged. Both tests claim to tell the patient how their virus has mutated and changed and which drugs w
Lubricants containing nonoxynol-9 (N-9) may increase the risk of contracting HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases when used for anal sex. This startling new research was presented last Wednesday, March 15, at Microbicide 2000, a landmark conference sponsored by the National Institutes of Health near Washington,
South Africa , a country with the fastest growing number of HIV-positive cases (estimated at 1,600 a day), has shocked many scientists and other concerned people by questioning the cause of AIDS. It is hard to believe, but South African President Thabo Mbeki recently called David Resnick, a San-Francisco-based microb
HIV patients are, thankfully, getting older because of the effect of antiretroviral therapy, Dr. William Powderly told the seventh Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections. They also face long-term issues of aging that may be confused with or compounded by HIV, the therapies used, or a synergy of both f
The state of Maine will expand Medicaid coverage to people who are HIV-positive but do not yet have a diagnosis of AIDS. It is the first state to do so. The Health Care Finance Administration, which administers both Medicaid and Medicare, granted Maine a waiver for the change last month. AIDS advocates have been fighti
Whether you re an activist with a seat at the policy table, a treatment educator, or an HIV-positive street radical, the 12th annual National HIV/AIDS Update conference hosted by the American Foundation for AIDS Research has something for everyone. Amfar s conference, which takes place March 14-17 at the Bill Graham Ci
What exactly is the San Francisco AIDS Foundation trying to say in its recent sex advertising campaign? The posters, an array of body parts with no identity and a headline that says, How Do You Know What You Know? are an indirect and whispered approach to a situation in the community that is of epic proportion. The sub
Metabolic problems in AIDS have been perplexing during the positive decline in sickness and death experienced over the last several years. Past articles in the B.A.R. following the AIDS epidemic have addressed these strange metabolic changes. While many of the changes are mostly cosmetic, they affect quality of life an
Tim Horn and Linda Grinberg, ACT UP/Golden Gate Writers Pool
Under the flimsy guise of serious medical reportage, a recent article boldly proclaimed, In 1996 a scientist claimed he d found a way to defeat AIDS. In the wave of euphoria that followed, a batch of new drugs flooded the market. Four years later, those drugs are wreaking unimaginable horror on the patients who dared t
Strategic interruption of therapy, or structured treatment interruption (STI) is the flavor of this year, said Dr. David Ho, vice chair of the seventh Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections. While data is skimpy, the hope is that stopping all anti-HIV drugs for some period of time is not only possible,
Get out that doctor s note and roll up a bluntie; medical marijuana identification cards are here. In a 10-1 vote Monday, January 24, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors approved a citywide system of issuing cards to people and their caregivers who qualify for medical marijuana under California s Proposition 215. Bo
Black men who have sex with men are five times as likely to be infected with HIV as their white counterparts. And gay and bisexual men of color now account for more new AIDS cases than among white gays, according to a report released earlier this month from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But the talk i
Newly elected president of the city s Redevelopment Commission, Mark Dunlop, a gay man with AIDS, wants to pull more gays and lesbians into the redevelopment process. I know it sounds funny, said Dunlop. You don t really associate gays and lesbians with redevelopment, but not everybody knows what it involves, and how t
In a dispute with a private insurance company under contract with the federal government, a 1,500-patient clinic at the Davies Medical Center campus on Castro Street may be forced to close this Monday, January 31. The Wellness Center, which treats about 500 patients living with HIV and AIDS, is being accused of overbil
When people with a life-threatening disease get a new doctor, it takes a while for the two to get a feel for each other, to establish the open communication, the question-and-answer, and give-and-take that patients rely on for their very survival. So when that carefully cultivated relationship is taken away, seemingly
Project Open Hand, which for years has provided home-delivered meals and groceries to people living with AIDS, has announced it will expand its program to include others who are homebound with any serious illness. A community meeting on the proposal is scheduled for this Wednesday, February 2 at Project Open Hand s Pol
This information is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between you and your doctor.