Panel Urges Action To Address Baltimore's HIV/AIDS Epidemic

Baltimore Sun: More AIDS action urged, by Jonathan Bor:

Six years after city officials declared a "state of emergency" over Baltimore's AIDS problem, a commission is calling for stronger prevention efforts to reverse an epidemic that remains one of the nation's worst.

In a report released yesterday, the advisory panel said Baltimore is beset by rising infection rates among adults in their 20s. Meanwhile, African-Americans continue to bear the brunt of the disease, accounting for 90 percent of new HIV and AIDS cases.

"Baltimore as a whole is not doing well," said Dr. William Blattner, an epidemiologist who heads the Baltimore City Commission on HIV/AIDS Prevention and Treatment. "We need to have a strategic plan so we can move ourselves out of the top 10 in a coordinated way."