Prisons Gone Bad

'Sexual activity and injection of drugs by inmates cannot be entirely eliminated and [we] aim to protect both prisoners and the public' from HIV and other diseases. Citing that HIV prevalence among U.S. prison inmates in 2004 was at 1.8%--more than four times the rate among the general population nationally--members of the World Health Organization and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS state in the January 11 edition of The New England Journal of Medicine that U.S. prisons have failed to implement safety guidelines that they have prescribed for more than a decade: ' Provide prisoners with access to condoms. ' Give prisoners access to bleach for cleaning drug-injecting equipment. ' Make drug-dependence treatment and methadone maintenance programs available in prisons if they're available in the local community. ' Consider needle-exchange programs for prison populations.