AEGiS-PRn: More Than 100,000 Youth Age 13-21 are Projected to be HIV Positive in United States; African American and Latino Youth Represent 62% of New Infections Six-City Campaign Responds to Health Emergency Promoting HIV Counseling, Testing and Care

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1999. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

More Than 100,000 Youth Age 13-21 are Projected to be HIV Positive in United States; African American and Latino Youth Represent 62% of New Infections Six-City Campaign Responds to Health Emergency Promoting HIV Counseling, Testing and Care

PRNewswire - November 17, 1999

NEW YORK, Nov. 17 /PRNewswire/ -- It is estimated that as many as 100,000 young people in the United States between the ages of 13 and 21 are infected with HIV and most don't know it and are not receiving necessary life-prolonging health care. HIV. LIVE WITH IT. GET TESTED! a campaign that speaks directly to youth in their own language, is being launched in response to this health emergency. In six U.S. cities, young people are hitting the streets in a social marketing campaign that promotes HIV counseling, testing and care in youth-friendly clinics. The campaign is designed to reach young people with important health information in their own words.

"Young people know that HIV is real, but most programs preach to us and are made for adults, so we turn them off," said Martha Diaz, 25, a Bronx, NY community youth leader and chair of the campaign's national youth advisory board. "This campaign gives us what we need -- good information, in our words, about youth-friendly HIV services we can trust. No matter who or what you are -- gay, straight or bisexual, Black, White or Latino -- if you have sex without a condom you are at risk and need information and access to HIV counseling, testing and care."

THE DEAL has been launched by the campaign as an innovative new outreach publication. This CD sized teen 'zine includes articles about music, dating, fitness -- and HIV -- along with community-based resource information. It was developed with a hip-hop flavor and includes articles created by teens from the campaign cities.

Teen peer educators distribute the 'zine along with other campaign materials that use phrases like "Gettin' busy?" and "Hittin' it?" words young people recognize asks the question "Are you having sex?" to get the attention of youth who may be at risk. Materials provide information about how to access free and confidential HIV counseling and testing. The campaign is taking place in Baltimore, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia and Washington, DC where the incidences of HIV among youth run high.

"We can no longer ignore that new HIV infections are spreading among teens," said Donna Futterman, MD, chair of the national campaign and Director of the Adolescent AIDS Program at Montefiore Medical Center (Bronx, NY). "This emergency must be addressed head-on by empowering young people with information to help them make smart decisions about their health. If someone has had a sexual encounter that may have put them at risk, knowing their HIV status is essential. Counseling can help reduce future risk and care can promote longer and healthier lives."

HIV. LIVE WITH IT. GET TESTED! was first created by Montefiore Medical Center's Adolescent AIDS Program to help address the disparity between the number of young people projected to be HIV positive and the relatively low number who are in care programs. It uses community partnering, advertising, public relations and street outreach marketing. Community referral testing partners are linked to health care sites to assure that young people who test HIV positive have access to appropriate follow-up care. Programs also provide risk reduction counseling.

This campaign is being conducted under the leadership of the Adolescent Medicine HIV/AIDS Research Network (AMHARN), a cooperative network affiliated with the National Institutes of Health (NICHD, NIAID, NIDA). AMHARN is the major national study of HIV infection in youth and brings together sites that are nationally recognized adolescent HIV programs along with principal investigators who are leaders in the care and research of youth with HIV. HIV. LIVE WITH IT. GET TESTED! has received funding support from the Congressional Black Caucus Health Emergency Special Allocation through the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) and the William T. Grant Foundation.

SOURCE Project Access

CONTACT: Kira Antell or Doug Stroup, both for Project Access, 212-213-4211/
991117
PR991111

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