Bill Steele
2014-09-18 05:55:03 UTC
Hey Weiner! You're still a disgusting piece of shit.
San Francisco Supervisor Scott Wiener on Wednesday became what
appears to be the first public figure in the country to disclose
that he's taking a drug that prevents HIV infection - a pill
that public health officials said could save lives but has
remained largely unused due to stigma and lack of awareness.
Wiener's announcement is significant because so few people have
been willing to talk openly about their use of Truvada, a drug
that's been weighed down by controversy. He said he hopes his
revelation will lift some of the stigma associated with Truvada
and encourage more men to consider taking it.
Critics have suggested that taking the daily pill could make
people more likely to engage in unsafe sex, but that claim
hasn't been backed up by research. Still, the idea has
persisted, and people have been slow to embrace a drug that
public health officials believe could be key to stopping, or
significantly slowing down, the spread of HIV.
Wiener's disclosure, which he made in an online essay published
Wednesday evening, comes as San Francisco pushes an aggressive
campaign to persuade more gay men to take the drug, which is
referred to as PrEP, for pre-exposure prophylaxis. Truvada, an
antiviral drug that has been used to treat HIV infection for
more than a decade, is the only pill approved for prevention.
At a meeting Thursday, Supervisor David Campos is expected to
discuss a new initiative to make Truvada more accessible in San
Francisco and distribute it to any resident who needs it. The
initiative includes a plan to help pay for the drug for
residents who can't afford it. Truvada can cost up to $14,000 a
year, although it's covered by most insurance plans, and the
drugmaker will help with the cost for people who need financial
help.
San Francisco city and public health officials said they want to
make the drug more accessible, and also normalize it. Wiener
said that was his motivation in going public.
'Elevate awareness'
"People need to feel comfortable talking about these issues and
not think they're going to be stigmatized or denigrated if they
talk about using it," Wiener said. "My hope is that talking
about it will elevate awareness about PrEP as an available and
powerful prevention tool."
Truvada, which is made by Gilead Sciences in Foster City, is a
single tablet that combines the drugs emtricitabine and
tenofovir disoproxil fumarate. If taken daily, it can cut the
risk of HIV infection by more than 90 percent.
The drug primarily has been tested in men who have sex with men,
which is why they're the focus of efforts to increase use of
PrEP, although it appears to also be effective for women and
transgender men and women.
Most people report no side effects from the drug, and about 10
percent of users say they have some gastrointestinal discomfort
for the first few weeks after starting. A smaller percentage of
users can suffer more serious signs of drug toxicity and will
need to stop taking the drug.
The drug has been widely discussed among health care providers
and in the gay community for several years - even before it won
FDA approval - but even in San Francisco, where much of the
initial research was done, the pill has been slow to gain
acceptance. Nationwide, only about 2,000 people are taking PrEP.
"Nationally, we all - health departments and community groups -
need to speed this up, because we could be preventing a lot of
infections," said Dan Van Gorder, executive director of Project
Inform, an HIV patient treatment and information advocacy
organization.
The slow acceptance of the drug has been due somewhat to the
stigma, which is widespread but has dimmed in recent months. But
another major barrier comes from doctors, many of whom have been
reluctant to prescribe it, especially if they don't regularly
treat HIV-positive patients and aren't familiar with Truvada.
Increase accessibility
That's where San Francisco can improve access to the drug,
public health and city officials said. Thursday's city meeting,
organized by Campos, is focused on the idea of ensuring the that
drug is easily available to anyone who is interested in it,
regardless of their ability to afford it or find a doctor who
will prescribe it.
"The issues we face are in getting what we know is a very
effective HIV-prevention tool into the hands of people who need
it," said Dr. Susan Philip, director of the STD Prevention and
Control Services Section of the San Francisco Department of
Public Health. "We've always believed in PrEP as an
intervention. Now we're figuring out how to help with delivery."
Wiener said he was slow to come around to PrEP, even after he'd
seen the initial reports about how effective it could be. Like
many other men, he wasn't convinced at first that he was the
right target for the drug.
"A lot of us in the past had stereotypes about who should be
using PrEP - that PrEP was for sex workers and porn actors and
people who hated using condoms. But really prep is much broader
than that," Wiener said.
Now, he said, he likens the drug to the birth control pill -
it's just another option for practicing safe sex.
"There are some people who are convinced PrEP is going to make
people reckless, but that's a bogus argument. It's the same
argument we've heard around birth control, and it's very
antipublic health," Wiener said. "There's always a lot of
judgment around sex.
"There are downsides to being public about my sexual health,"
Wiener said, adding that the most awkward drawback so far has
been telling his mom he was taking PrEP. "Ultimately, I decided
that this could play a positive role in moving the dialogue
forward and increasing awareness."
http://www.sfgate.com/health/article/S-F-supervisor-discloses-
PrEP-use-in-hopes-of-5763189.php
San Francisco Supervisor Scott Wiener on Wednesday became what
appears to be the first public figure in the country to disclose
that he's taking a drug that prevents HIV infection - a pill
that public health officials said could save lives but has
remained largely unused due to stigma and lack of awareness.
Wiener's announcement is significant because so few people have
been willing to talk openly about their use of Truvada, a drug
that's been weighed down by controversy. He said he hopes his
revelation will lift some of the stigma associated with Truvada
and encourage more men to consider taking it.
Critics have suggested that taking the daily pill could make
people more likely to engage in unsafe sex, but that claim
hasn't been backed up by research. Still, the idea has
persisted, and people have been slow to embrace a drug that
public health officials believe could be key to stopping, or
significantly slowing down, the spread of HIV.
Wiener's disclosure, which he made in an online essay published
Wednesday evening, comes as San Francisco pushes an aggressive
campaign to persuade more gay men to take the drug, which is
referred to as PrEP, for pre-exposure prophylaxis. Truvada, an
antiviral drug that has been used to treat HIV infection for
more than a decade, is the only pill approved for prevention.
At a meeting Thursday, Supervisor David Campos is expected to
discuss a new initiative to make Truvada more accessible in San
Francisco and distribute it to any resident who needs it. The
initiative includes a plan to help pay for the drug for
residents who can't afford it. Truvada can cost up to $14,000 a
year, although it's covered by most insurance plans, and the
drugmaker will help with the cost for people who need financial
help.
San Francisco city and public health officials said they want to
make the drug more accessible, and also normalize it. Wiener
said that was his motivation in going public.
'Elevate awareness'
"People need to feel comfortable talking about these issues and
not think they're going to be stigmatized or denigrated if they
talk about using it," Wiener said. "My hope is that talking
about it will elevate awareness about PrEP as an available and
powerful prevention tool."
Truvada, which is made by Gilead Sciences in Foster City, is a
single tablet that combines the drugs emtricitabine and
tenofovir disoproxil fumarate. If taken daily, it can cut the
risk of HIV infection by more than 90 percent.
The drug primarily has been tested in men who have sex with men,
which is why they're the focus of efforts to increase use of
PrEP, although it appears to also be effective for women and
transgender men and women.
Most people report no side effects from the drug, and about 10
percent of users say they have some gastrointestinal discomfort
for the first few weeks after starting. A smaller percentage of
users can suffer more serious signs of drug toxicity and will
need to stop taking the drug.
The drug has been widely discussed among health care providers
and in the gay community for several years - even before it won
FDA approval - but even in San Francisco, where much of the
initial research was done, the pill has been slow to gain
acceptance. Nationwide, only about 2,000 people are taking PrEP.
"Nationally, we all - health departments and community groups -
need to speed this up, because we could be preventing a lot of
infections," said Dan Van Gorder, executive director of Project
Inform, an HIV patient treatment and information advocacy
organization.
The slow acceptance of the drug has been due somewhat to the
stigma, which is widespread but has dimmed in recent months. But
another major barrier comes from doctors, many of whom have been
reluctant to prescribe it, especially if they don't regularly
treat HIV-positive patients and aren't familiar with Truvada.
Increase accessibility
That's where San Francisco can improve access to the drug,
public health and city officials said. Thursday's city meeting,
organized by Campos, is focused on the idea of ensuring the that
drug is easily available to anyone who is interested in it,
regardless of their ability to afford it or find a doctor who
will prescribe it.
"The issues we face are in getting what we know is a very
effective HIV-prevention tool into the hands of people who need
it," said Dr. Susan Philip, director of the STD Prevention and
Control Services Section of the San Francisco Department of
Public Health. "We've always believed in PrEP as an
intervention. Now we're figuring out how to help with delivery."
Wiener said he was slow to come around to PrEP, even after he'd
seen the initial reports about how effective it could be. Like
many other men, he wasn't convinced at first that he was the
right target for the drug.
"A lot of us in the past had stereotypes about who should be
using PrEP - that PrEP was for sex workers and porn actors and
people who hated using condoms. But really prep is much broader
than that," Wiener said.
Now, he said, he likens the drug to the birth control pill -
it's just another option for practicing safe sex.
"There are some people who are convinced PrEP is going to make
people reckless, but that's a bogus argument. It's the same
argument we've heard around birth control, and it's very
antipublic health," Wiener said. "There's always a lot of
judgment around sex.
"There are downsides to being public about my sexual health,"
Wiener said, adding that the most awkward drawback so far has
been telling his mom he was taking PrEP. "Ultimately, I decided
that this could play a positive role in moving the dialogue
forward and increasing awareness."
http://www.sfgate.com/health/article/S-F-supervisor-discloses-
PrEP-use-in-hopes-of-5763189.php