Addressing HIV Stigma, Overseas and at Home

On Tuesday, the Chicago Tribune profiled a controversial clause of U.S. immigration law that bans admission by foreign nationals who have HIV or AIDS. In 1987, the height of the AIDS scare in this country, HIV was added to the list of "communicable diseases of public health significance," and therefore deemed sufficient grounds for denying entry under the Immigration and Naturalization Act. Although supported by some socially conservative groups who fear that admitting HIV-positive tourists will increase the rate of transmission here, according to the article the policy is condemned by most health organizations including the American Medical Association and the World Health Organization, as discrimination wrongly and weakly guised as public health. Myra's comments: It is sad and disturbing that in an era when the U.S. Government is spending billions of dollars overseas to combat HIV stigma and promote access to health services for HIV-infected people in developing countries, we continue to perpetuate such damaging policies. The U.S. is clearly a leader in the global fight to combat HIV/AIDS and stigma; we should translate that leadership to our policies here at home.