Hepatitis C Patients More Likely to Drink, Study Finds

Three times more likely

People infected with hepatitis C are more likely to be current or former heavy drinkers, a new study suggests.

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Young People At Risk For STDs Often Don't Get Tested: Study

Testing

Although they account for half of all new sexually transmitted infections, most young people between the ages of 15 and 25 have never been tested for those infections, according to a study published in the May issue of the Journal of Adolescent Health.

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Stay Covered All Year Long

Newlyweds need to update their coverage

Now that you have health insurance through the Marketplace, it is important to keep it throughout the year so you can get the health care you need. Keep your coverage up to date so you will have continuous access to health insurance benefits, like medications and care for HIV and other health issues, free preventive care, hospital stays and substance use and mental health services. Here are some things you can do to stay covered all year long.

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In This Issue

Thirty-five years ago this week, the world was introduced to what would become the health catastrophe of our time, when the CDC released the June 5, 1981 MMWR (Morbidity & Mortality Weekly Report) identifying rare cases of Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia (PCP) among five white gay men at UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles. A lot has happened over the last 35 years, but the most important thing about HIV/AIDS is that it is not over, especially in Black communities—and it will never be over in our communities unless we decide to make it so. All of the scientific breakthroughs in the world, all of the advances in surveillance, diagnosis, treating and preventing HIV will not end the AIDS pandemic in Black communities, unless we decide that Black lives matter, our lives matter enough to do the right thing about HIV/AIDS. That means confronting stigma and ignorance in our communities. That means fighting for access to both preventive and therapeutic therapies and acknowledging the critical role that poverty, housing instability, poor education and the other social determinants of health play in the perpetuation of this virus. It means fighting racism, homophobia, sexism, transphobia and all of the stupid distractions that prevent us from seeing how much we have in common and how deeply our destinies are inextricably connected. And during this season, it means voting and organizing as if our lives depended on it, because they do.

Read more: In This Issue