WORLD NEWS FLASH by KS
HIV & BLACK PEOPLE: United States
Despite overall progress in reducing HIV transmission in the United States, HIV continues to affect some groups more than others due to longstanding and ingrained barriers. Black or African American people account for a higher proportion of new HIV infections, compared to other races and ethnicities. Black people accounted for 13% of the U.S. population but 40% of people with HIV in 2019, according to CDC estimates.
HIV disparities can and must end. Racism, longstanding systemic inequities, social and economic marginalization, residential segregation, unequal reach of HIV prevention and treatment, and higher levels of HIV in some communities are among the factors that have contributed to these troubling and persistent disparities.
A CDC report published ahead of National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day on February 7, finds 52% of Black adults with diagnosed HIV resided in areas in the country with higher Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) scores – often residentially segregated communities comprised predominately of Black people. The report underscores the continuing, urgent need to address the social determinants that contribute to disparities and better deliver HIV prevention and care to people who need it most.
A separate report by New York State health officials and CDC found, in the state of New York, that COVID-19 vaccination coverage was lower among adults with HIV than the general adult population; and that Black people with HIV were among groups with the lowest COVID-19 vaccination coverage. People engaged in HIV care were more likely to be vaccinated than people not engaged in HIV care. The report emphasizes the need for interventions to help people with HIV get into and stay in HIV care, get vaccinated, and stay up-to-date on COVID-19 vaccines according to CDC guidelines.
To achieve health equity and end the HIV epidemic, the nation must overcome barriers that, for far too long, have stood between some people and highly effective HIV prevention and treatment tools. CDC is working with partners on many fronts, and through the federal Ending the HIV Epidemic in the U.S. initiative, to focus resources to communities that could most benefit from key, science-based HIV treatment and prevention strategies that are scaled up in innovative ways to reach populations equitably.
“Despite tremendous progress in reducing HIV transmission since the height of the epidemic, HIV continues to disproportionately affect Black people in America. Health disparities are not inevitable and can be addressed. The advanced, highly effective HIV prevention and treatment tools and COVID-19 vaccines that have been accessed by some must be accessible to all. While there is no simple solution to equity, our nation must finally tear down the wall of factors – systemic racism, homophobia, transphobia, HIV-related stigma, and other ingrained barriers – that still obstructs these tools against HIV and COVID-19 from equitably reaching the people who could benefit from them,” said Demetre Daskalakis, MD, MPH, Director of CDC’s HIV Prevention Program.
MORE WORRISOME HIV NEWS: WORLD
Newly published research from the Netherlands has revealed the existence of a more transmissible and damaging variant of HIV, the Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) said on Feb. 7.
People living with the newly revealed subtype, experience double the rate of immune system decline (measured by the CD4 count level of infection-busting T cells) and have higher viral loads.
They are also vulnerable to developing AIDS two to three times faster after diagnosis, than if they were living with other strains of the virus.
The research also revealed that the variant has been circulating in the Netherlands for years and remains receptive to treatment. The study, led by researchers from the University of Oxford’s Big Data Institute, is the first to report on the subtype-B of the virus.
According to UNAIDS in a press statement, the discovery highlights the urgency to “halt the pandemic and reach all with testing and treatment.” The long-running HIV pandemic continues to take a life every minute and scientists have long worried about the evolution of new, more transmissible, variants of the virus.
Also according to UNAIDS, the newly identified variant does not represent a major public health threat but underscores the urgency of speeding up the UN’s drive to end AIDS.
In a statement, the Program Deputy Executive Director, Eamonn Murphy, noted that around 10 million people living with HIV are still not on antiretroviral therapy, “fueling the continued spread of the virus and potential for further variants.”
“We urgently need to deploy cutting-edge medical innovations in ways that reach the communities most in need. Whether it’s HIV treatment or COVID-19 vaccines, inequalities in access are perpetuating pandemics in ways that harm us all.” he said.
HIV remains the deadliest pandemic of our time, said UNAIDS. Since first discovered in the early 80s, an estimated 79 million people have become infected with the virus, for which there is still no vaccine and no cure.
Some 36 million people have died from AIDS-related illnesses since the start of the pandemic and 1.5 million people were newly infected in 2020. Of the 38 million people living with the virus today, 28 million are on life-saving antiretroviral therapy, keeping them alive and well and preventing transmission.
CYCLONE HITS MADAGASCAR: AFRICA
Tropical Cyclone Batsirai wreaked havoc across Madagascar over the weekend, the second deadly storm to batter the African island nation since the beginning of the year.
Batsirai made landfall on the night of Feb. 5 local time, with wind speeds of up to 165 kilometers per hour, and wind gusts of over 140 mph. The most affected districts were Nosy Varika, Mananjary and Manakara, according to early reports.
With more than 43,000 newly displaced across around 180 sites, and at least 211 schools impacted, UN teams are working with national authorities, to provide emergency relief and support, said the initial situation report published on Feb. 7 by the UN humanitarian affairs office, OCHA.
Numbers impacted are expected to rise in the days ahead, as more information becomes available, including for hard-to-reach areas yet to file initial reports on damage and loss of life sustained.
The Government estimates that up to 600,000 could be affected by Batsirai overall, and the number of displaced could rise to 150,000. The World Food Program (WFP) says that around 1.64 million are at crisis level or worse, when it comes to food insecurity.
Tropical Cyclone Batsirai’s wind and rains have caused considerable damage to roads and transport links, leaving some of the hardest-hit areas inaccessible. At least 19 roads and 17 bridges have been cut.
“The devastation wrought by Batsirai has compounded the suffering caused by the passage of Tropical Storm Ana and an Intertropical Convergence Zone in Madagascar less than two weeks ago,” OCHA noted.
Tropical Storm Ana left 55 people dead and affected 132,000, including 15,152 people who remain displaced, with 14,938 of them sheltering temporarily in 68 centers across the Analamanga region. The Government declare a State of Emergency on Jan. 27.
The cyclone has now entered the Mozambique channel, where it is moving southwards and away from land. It has lost much of its strength and was classified as Post-Tropical Depression ex-Batsirai at 4 pm local time on Feb. 7, said OCHA.
The Government activated search and rescue efforts the previous day, including a helicopter rescue operation in some areas.
