Hitt or miss: the President's council goes to bat over needle exchange & names reporting. Interview by Donna Rochon.

ABSTRACT

AIDS The first annual Houston Treatment Advocacy Forum focused on the mechanisms and institutions that provide access to care for persons living with HIV/AIDS, as well as issues of needle exchange programs and mandatory name reporting. Dr. R. Scott Hitt, Chairman of the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS, is interviewed about these issues. Dr. Scott responds to questions concerning what the Council has told the President about funding needle exchange programs and the Council's position on mandatory reporting. While the President recognizes and supports the efficacy of needle exchange programs, no Federal funding has been approved. There appears to be a lack of political will on this issue giving the appearance of an administration uninterested in HIV prevention efforts. Dr. Hitt views the mood of the country as endorsing local control over both needle exchange programs and mandatory name reporting, a viewpoint which he shares. There appears to be a national trend toward names-based HIV/AIDS surveillance systems despite concerns over confidentiality. Currently, the Texas State Health Department is evaluating a names-based HIV/AIDS surveillance system against one that uses unique identifiers.^ieng