AIDS Action Urges Everyone to Help End the AIDS Epidemic by Being Part of the Search for an H...( ED Rebecca Haag's Statement for N...),Health

ED Rebecca Haag's Statement for National HIV Vaccine Awareness Day, May 18

WASHINGTON, May 16 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Twenty-six years into the AIDS epidemic, someone is newly infected with HIV every 13 minutes in the U.S. On Sunday, May 18, HIV Vaccine Awareness Day, AIDS Action, one of five national partners in the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID) HIV Vaccine Research Education Initiative, urges everyone to help end the AIDS epidemic by participating in the search for an HIV Vaccine. We also thank the numerous volunteers, community educators, scientists and advocates for their efforts to further HIV vaccine research.

AIDS Action's support for continued and increased investment in HIV vaccine research is unwavering. Basic HIV vaccine research must remain one of the many prevention strategies being pursued at a national level. We will continue to advocate for HIV vaccine research here in Washington, DC and raise awareness of and support for HIV vaccine research across the country.

The best long-term hope for controlling the AIDS epidemic is the development of safe, effective and affordable HIV vaccines. Historically, vaccines have been the most powerful weapon against diseases like polio, measles and Hepatitis B. In fact, no major viral epidemic has been defeated without one.

Vaccine research is a difficult, complicated and iterative process that takes many years. It took 47 years to develop a vaccine for polio, and 42 for measles. This past September, the phase II Merck Step Trial was halted due to ineffectiveness, raising a storm of scientific and media inquiry. While the results were disappointing, the Step trial itself and its safety mechanisms were successfully implemented. The failure of one vaccine candidate does not signify the failure of all HIV vaccine research. This setback, as have others, may be a stepping stone to future success.

AIDS Action is committed to increase awareness of t
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