Not Just...

 

I see articles about how HIV is addressed dissimilarly due to differing patient  demographics.  These factors include race & ethnicity, sex, rurality & social vulnerability.  It's accurate to say these distinctions can & do impact HIV treatment, but there's something being left out.  These traits affect groups no matter what the issue. 

Any of these factors or combination of them can push a person further from the standard of care given the mainstream population.  I'm gay, rural, poor & on disability.  My access to everything is very limited compared to a middle class person living in a metro area.  Still, that affects everything, not just my HIV treatment.

Too many articles are written as if these were isolated assaults those HIV+.  Disparity in treatment has always been a reality.  It shouldn't be, but it is.  In many incidents, the more conventional, metro & affluent a person is, the better they will be treated.

Stigma & disparity are a given in any situation where there's a power imbalance.  From what I can tell, it's not a fight that can be won.  You can focus on it & waste a lot of effort, but it's unlikely any lasting change will come about.  Sorry, but society sucks.

Cya...

Great, If You Get It...

 

There've been a lot of articles this morning discussing how Gilead is allowing for generics of it's new twice yearly HIV med & PrEP med, Lenacapavir.  This will only happen in about 120 poorer countries, leaving the rest of the world to foot the bill.   

This isn't the 1st time this has happened.  A few years back they did this to other meds.   Dropping the drugs price significantly for African countries.  What would pay for a few days of the medication in the US, would be year's worth there.   

Gilead will be asking about $42K+ for the 2 dose med in places like the US.  It has been stated in other articles this med could be made for as low $40 annually.   So, these parts of the world will get a med that most people in the US & similar countries won't be able to get for some time due to  broken healthcare systems.  

Don't get me wrong, I'm happy for these people.  It just seems I'm never in the right market to get these prices.  I know these places are in horrible condition.  Still, I think some people need to look at the level of poverty & horror shows going on in their own backyards before they go touting foreign charity efforts.

Take care.

Cya...

Maybe...

 

Maybe it's just the 24 hour internet outage, the sidelined errand or crappy weather, but I'm not doing as well as I'd like.  I'm tired, anxious & cold.  The net's working, it's sunny & supposed to warm up.  Some issues are being handled.  Still it's exhausting.

There are articles out lately about "curing" HIV.  These things are being titled & worded as if they're just around the corner & they're not.  They get hopes up about research possibilities.  These things may never materialize.  Even if they do, it may years out.  

There was a point when education, awareness & prevention were major parts of the HIV battle plan.  Now, that has been cast aside for "treatment as prevention."  anxiousUnless it's medication, there's little discussion of prevention methods.  

In a world where the current generation has the lowest awareness & knowledge of HIV, it would seem like it's time to bring back the old model.  Many of these people don't really understand the concept of HIV, AIDS or the transmission of the virus.  Prevention is prevention, treatment it treatment.  Both are important & neither can replace the other.  It's not a hard concept.

Cya...

No Big Secret...

Over time, you have to accept some ugly truths about people.  Articles detail the major obstacles for those living with HIV.  They face homelessness, food insecurity, inability to access doctors/meds, stigma, financial strain.  The issue isn't they're HIV+, the problem is society is callous & depraved.

Those issues are faced by people around the world who don't have HIV.   The same issues people have always faced.  If this country wanted, it could've ended these issues for everyone.  But, we live in a world that hates the poor.   They further victimize the unfortunate.   The world that is like a weird coliseum.   We watch to see how long the poor can outlast their fate.  We observe, we boo & laugh when they fall.

Truth is, most people are monsters.  They may not attack you, but they'd gladly watch as get mauled.   They'd sell popcorn & charge viewing fees.  Shows like The Purge & Hunger Games are popular, because some people would really like to see it happen.  That's our world.

It's not a secret, just a horrible truth.

Cya..

Better, Where...

They're saying the economy is stronger & growing everyday.  Really, where?  Not in my area.  If anything, things are bleaker than they have been.  There are few good jobs.  Prices keep going up as opportunities go down.  People are leaving this state for just about anywhere else.  And Oklahoma is not alone in this crap, many rural states are in the same situation.

As these times stay hard, an epidemic of opioid use has hit many areas.   This article is about IV drug use in West Virginia & how it's leading to higher rates of HIV.  I've been posting the this kind of article for a couple of years now.   

If the situation is getting better, it's only for the rich, not the poor or even the middle class.  A bad economy leads to stress which leads to bad choices which leads to serious, sometimes deadly consequences.  Don't tell us the economy is better when a good chunk of the United States looks like a cesspool.

Cya...

Recovering...

It's weird to think of the month's remainder of mid-90's temps to be cooler, but they will be.   The highest in the 10-day forecast is 97 F.  That's still 10 degrees cooler than Friday was. Yesterday was about that.  It made, the day  much more tolerable.   For now, that blast of heat seems to be our highest in sight.  I hope so.

My roomie, the cats & myself are struggling to recuperate from those 2 overheated days.  It's not been easy.  I'm still tired, achy & struggling to hydrate.  Being poor always sucks.  But when the times get hard, like weather extremes, it sucks every ass there ever was.

Stay as safe & comfortable as you can.

Cya...

I Get It...

Since the Republicans have taken over things, they've made it clear unless you're be rich, white & exactly like them, you aren't wanted.   They've attacked the poor, gays, disabled, elderly & others.   With their tax plan  &  repeal of net neutrality, they've told everyone to F'off & die.  

I read about states losing funding for insurance for children, elderly & the disabled.  Missouri has announced it will stop funding those with HIV.  What these Republicans are saying is that they hate these people & want them to die.  

Its depressing & unnerving.  Most of us who face stigma, have done so our entire lives.  You might think  we'd be used it, but you'd be wrong.  It doesn't surprise us anymore, but it can get unbearable.  To wake up every morning & know there's a large part of the population that hates you & there's nothing you can do about it, that's beyond tiresome & overwhelming.  

Not once, in any significant way, have I ever truly been on the winning side of things.  Somehow, I've always managed to be on the wrong side of every door.  You tell yourself it doesn't matter, but after a while all that hate & anger being aimed in your general direction begins to grind you down.  It's not a single thing, it's the landslide of crap these people have launched at you.

I'd love to tell you there's a way to handle this, but I haven't found any.   I'd love to tell you things will get better, but I doubt that.  I'd love to tell  you this will pass, but I don't want to lie to you.  Even if it is temporary & things do get better, you still have to live with knowing what they were willing to do to you.  Just because you weren't their kind of people.

At this point, I'm tired & out of places to retreat.  I've tapped what I can, there's nothing much left.   I don't think I've ever wanted people hurt more than I do at this moment.  To all those people who got the Republicans to this point of power, I wish upon you the worst of things & every pox.  May Lovecraft be right about the universe.

Cya...

Adjacent...

This article isn't directly about HIV, but it's important.  It deals with the fall out of being poor, uninsured, under insured, etc.. in the U.S.   The author is a physician & he details how being poor is all but a death sentence in this article.    This quote will give you a taste.

In my 27 years at these two safety-net hospitals, not one of my patients received an organ or bone marrow transplant. Yet the organs that fed the transplant centers across the region came from the dying patients in these hospitals.  Our patients — the poorest of the poor — gave, but they never received.

The grip of HIV is most strongly felt among the poor & those areas most entrenched in poverty.  Poverty is prime factor in the spread of HIV, drug use & other socio-medical issues this country faces today.   Being poor isn't just a stigma, it's a nail in your coffin.

Cya...

Poor & Adherent...

I'm not looking for sympathy, but I'm poor, on disability, HIV + & adherent to my meds.   Becoming poor & + were both easy.  Getting on disability was a serious pain.  Staying adherent to my regimen  has been something I've just done.  But, I've questioned it & hated it a lot of the time.  

I see articles about poor people & not adhering to their regimen.  Most folks would think it was easy to stick to take your life saving medications.  Sometimes it isn't.

• Do you have the means to obtain your meds?
• Can you handle taking your meds?
• Do you have food to eat so you can take your meds?
• Do you have a place to store your meds safely?
• Are you fit enough to remember to take them?

There are all good points, but there are 2 others I can think of that are more challenging.  Do you feel you're worth taking the meds?   Do you feel your life is worth extending by taking the meds?  

Some people wonder if they're worth taking these meds.  Maybe they feel they did something awful  & deserve to die.  Some question, if they should endure the meds & everything else just to keep living a life they're not sure is worth living.

Being poor is difficult.  It comes with a ton of baggage that effects you just become you happen to be less affluent.  People hate to admit it, but most of the world hates the poor.  They especially despise those who happen to also be sick, ethnic, female, or some other marginalizing factor.  

Everyday, poor people  living with HIV have to ask themselves, can I get these meds?  Even if I can,  should I take them?  Is it worth it?  Those aren't easy questions & the answers may change by the hour.  If you ever wonder why some people don't adhere to their HIV regimens, this is just the tip of the issue.

Cya...

Still Rising...

Over the past few years, we've seen the rise of HIV in states like Ohio, Indiana & Kentucky.   Rural counties in these states saw a boom in HIV rates due to IV drug use & sharing needles.  The problems are still ongoing there.

Over the past few weeks, there've been articles talking about rural counties in other states like Alabama & Texas.   These counties are faced with potential HIV outbreaks due to IV drug use.   These are poor, economically disadvantaged places.  Places with little to no resources to help prevent or deal with HIV. 

The economy is driving people to self medicate.  Drug use is leading to even further risky behaviors.  This is how a non-sex transmitted outbreak of HIV starts.

Still, I wouldn't hold my breath for any government agency intervening.  No, that's not the Republican way.  These outbreaks will most likely happen & the fall out will domino across the poor, rural regions of the US.

Try to be safe & have a good day.

Cya...

Ethnic, Poor, Drugs...

This article is about HIV rates in Saskatchewan, Canada.  They are higher than the national average.  Many of the + people are poor & indigenous.  Many are also IV drug users.   This is a good read.  It shows again how being fringe can increase your odds of contracting HIV.  It stresses the need for communication, testing & education.  Treatment only works if people know they need it & can access it.  

Cya...

Impact...

There isn't going to be a lot of discussion on this article today.  It's an important article, albeit much of what it has to say, has been said before.  Still, it has one of  the best quotes I've read in a long time regarding HIV.

"This is a disease where it certainly can happen to anyone ... but it doesn't happen to anyone equally," she said. "This is a disease that accelerates when injustice is in the pathway."

Those injustices, according to Williamson, include poverty, racial discrimination, gender discrimination and discrimination due to sexual orientation.

 I hope you get the impact of that statement.  Remember that later this week is National HIV Testing Day on the 27th.

Cya...