The Year in HIV

May 12: Visiting New York City for a fundraiser, President Obama was met with 500 angry AIDS protesters (pictured above). The demonstrators were upset with the president for allegedly reneging on his promise to provide $50 billion toward the global AIDS fight; news reports indicated the funds have not kept up with inflation, nor increased to the levels Obama promised while campaigning for office. Eight protestors were arrested after laying down on Madison Avenue. June 30: St. Louis's John Cochran V.A. Medical Center sent letters to 1,800 veterans warning them they may have been exposed to HIV and hepatitis at the hospital, CBS News reported. Improper care of dental equipment, used between February 2009 and March 2010, is the likely culprit. Russ Carnahan, a Congressman from Missouri, called for a Congressional investigation into the matter. July 26: After the Food and Drug Administration in June upheld their ban on blood donations from men who sleep with men, Massachusetts senator John Kerry called for an end to the FDA's quarter-century long policy at the agency's Blood Products Advisory Committee hearing. 'The science regarding HIV/AIDS contraction has advanced dramatically in the last three decades, and our understanding of what constitutes high- risk behavior has grown far beyond the ignorant idea that sexual orientation is an indicator in itself,' Kerry said.

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