A new public health campaign is to be launched to address the nation’s growing complacency over the HIV virus and AIDS in general.
The 5 year program will cost nearly fifty million dollars and include advertising on public transport, media broadcasting and a web site.
It is believed that over one million US citizens are infected by AIDS and alarmingly about a third of these have no idea whatsoever.
The latter have never been tested and continue with their sexual habits totally unaware that they could be passing on a deadly disease.
The president of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, Michael Weinstein is not convinced that the new initiative, set up by the Obama administration will be enough. Although he appreciates that the new government has identified the need for increasing awareness.
In an alarming statement Kevin Fenton of the National Center for HIV/AIDS stated that someone’s mother, daughter, father or friend is affected by the HIV virus every nine and a half minutes. This is what needs to be known by those or do not feel that AIDS affects them.
Certain sections of the plan will target more specific groups based on statistics, these include black men and women and also Latinos.
Over the years the black population has been largely ignored in terms of AIDS awareness but one in 16 men are known to become infected. In women the figure is slightly better, at one in thirty but both are high compared to the rest of the population of America.
