By Angela Knudson
April 27, 2009

On April 7, the White House along with the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), announced a new campaign to tackle HIV/AIDS in America. Act Against AIDS, a five-year, $45 million dollar campaign designed to inform Americans of this ever-growing problem, is the first federally funded HIV/AIDS campaign in almost twenty years that focuses on domestic issues. The new communication campaign, intended to reduce incidence in the United States, plans to deliver HIV prevention messages through mass media in a way that is compelling, relevant, and credible. The campaign has many phases with different objectives, all of which are unique and address numerous populations at high-risk. With 56,000 new infections every year, such messages are necessary in order to curb the spread of the disease.

To kick-off the campaign, the first phase (9½ Minutes) will address complacency surrounding HIV/AIDS and remind individuals of the health threat that still exists in this country. To stress the magnitude of the epidemic, a series of audio, print, and video materials will spread the message that every 9½ minutes, another person is infected with HIV in America. Messages will be seen through various communication channels, such as transit and radio ads, online banner ads and videos, and airport dioramas. The messaging will stress that HIV continues to be a large problem and cannot be ignored or forgotten. All messages direct people to where they can find more information on how to protect themselves, those they know, and their communities.

Future phases of the campaign will address populations most at-risk for HIV infection, including African Americans – the community that bares the greatest burden of the epidemic. While they make up 12 percent of the population, African Americans comprise over 50 percent of new infections every year. Act Against AIDS plans to develop prevention messages meeting their unique needs. Messages targeting Latinos and men who have sex with men will soon follow.

The U.S. Conference of Mayors remains focused and actively engaged in the fight against AIDS. The Conference, in cooperation with the CDC, currently funds 16 community-based organizations and Native American tribes that implement HIV/AIDS prevention projects for high-risk women of color. Such projects take place in cities spread across the United States, including New York City, Houston, Memphis, Duluth, MN, and Lafayette, LA. Access to this information is critical, and exposure to the truths of HIV will help ensure that individuals take necessary precautions to protect themselves from this life changing disease.