Condoms and Contraceptives Count: Condom Use to Prevent Unintended Pregnancies Has Dramatic Effect On Reducing New HIV Infections Worldwide

What:

Audio news conference: More than 25 years into the AIDS pandemic, prevention remains a top priority in the continued fight against new HIV infections. A report called Comprehensive HIV Prevention: Condoms and Contraceptives Count, issued by Population Action International (PAI), will be released next month at the XVII International AIDS Conference in Mexico City. Despite the irrefutable evidence of contraceptives’ critical importance in preventing HIV infection, donor support for condoms in developing countries remains stagnant and far below projected need. Consequently, preventable HIV infections continue to rise. Three experts on the issue will highlight new research findings and provide six key recommendations to address gaps in the provision and use of condoms and contraceptives.

When:

Tuesday, July 22, 2008 at 10:30 AM EST. The call is toll-free and easily accessible from your newsroom desk.

Who:

Amy Coen, President and CEO of Population Action International – one of the nation's leading independent research and advocacy organizations – is an expert in the areas of reproductive health and population. Amy was instrumental in starting the women’s movement in the U.S. and has dedicated her career to the reproductive rights of women. During the audio news conference, she will address the efficacy of integrating HIV prevention and family planning, and why politics and funding policies have derailed such efforts.

Karen Hardee, Vice President of Research at PAI, has been a Social demographer for over twenty years. Most recently, Karen worked with PAI researchers and field staff developing a tool to assess and improve the quality of data reported for measuring success in global health initiatives. She has directed global research portfolios and was a technical advisor on the series "What Works" A Policy and Program Guide to the Evidence on Family Planning/Reproductive Health, Safe Motherhood and STI/HIV/AIDS Interventions." Karen, co-author of the report, will discuss the findings and recommendations.

Dr. Lydia Mungherera, a medical doctor, HIV-positive woman and advocate in Uganda, is the founder of numerous organizations and initiatives, including the Uganda Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS and the Pan African Treatment Access Movement. Lydia has worked for the World Health Organization, Elizabeth Glasier Pediatric AIDS Foundation and The AIDS Support Organization, among others. Lydia will speak from more than twenty years of experience working in programs on the ground.

Why:

Access to contraceptives to prevent unintended pregnancies among women living with HIV and AIDS is an essential strategy to reduce new HIV infections. Preventing unintended pregnancies in women living with HIV and AIDS is more cost effective than providing treatment to prevent mother-to-child transmission and recognizes the reproductive rights of positive women. And yet contraceptives are often left out of prevention strategies for political and ideological reasons. Of the estimated 18 billion condoms needed in 2006, donors provided just 2.3 billion. With the introduction of promising mechanisms to coordinate and track condom use and demand in the developing countries, donor countries have an opportunity to scale-up donations – both monetary and commodity – to begin to stem the tide of HIV infections worldwide.

PAI seeks to increase public awareness of the continued impact and global response to HIV and AIDS through the AIDS 2008: XVII International AIDS Conference 3–8 August 2008. Attendees of ANC will have access to the full embargoed report: HIV Prevention: Condoms and Contraceptives Count.

Update: To listen to the July 22, 2008 Audio News Conference, please go to the Ready Talk recording.

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Population Action International (PAI) works to ensure a world in which humanity and the natural environment exist in balance, fewer people live in poverty, and every person has the right and access to sexual and reproductive health.