News Outlets Examine Factors Leading To Increased Number Of HIV Cases In Russia, Ukraine
Newsweek: The Kremlin Shows the World How to Make an AIDS Crisis Worse
“…A combination of widespread intravenous drug use, ignorance of or disregard for the perils of unsafe sex, and the conservative policies that have held sway in the Kremlin since Vladimir Putin’s return to the presidency in 2012 have sent HIV infection rates soaring in Russia. New HIV infections have slowed dramatically throughout the world in recent years, including in much of sub-Saharan Africa — the region worst hit by the AIDS-causing virus — but Russia is a deadly exception…” (Bennetts, 1/26).
VICE Magazine: How the War in Ukraine Is Causing a Rise in HIV Infections
“…War does not only lead to immediate death, destruction, and injury; it’s wounds may be so deep that their effects last long after today. And this is likely to be the case in Ukraine, a country with 260,000-340,000 people living with HIV at last count, and a prevalence rate of 1.3 percent in 15- to 49-year-olds, according to UNAIDS. The country boasts one of the highest rates of HIV infection in Europe, yet thanks to the commitment of several NGOs, Ukraine had managed, over the years before the outbreak of the war in Donbass, to reduce the rate of HIV infection…” (Clavarino, 1/25).
The KFF Daily Global Health Policy Report summarized news and information on global health policy from hundreds of sources, from May 2009 through December 2020. All summaries are archived and available via search.