XPost: memphis.general, alt.fan.rush-limbaugh, talk.politics.guns   
   XPost: sac.politics, alt.politics.homosexuality   
   From: abe.lincoln.was@a.fool   
      
   MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Shelby County is topping the charts, but not in a positive   
   way.   
      
   A report from the Health Department ranks the Memphis area as second in the   
   nation for the highest number of new HIV cases.   
      
   Now, some Democratic lawmakers are fighting back by asking for the state’s   
   help in curbing the uptick.   
      
   More than 7,500 people in Shelby County are living with HIV and AIDS.   
      
   That’s not just the most in the state, it’s the second most in the country   
   only behind Miami.   
      
   “This was an acknowledgment that no, we are not in a good place and there   
   needs to be an all-hands-on-deck approach in order to mitigate this particular   
   STI,” said Shelby County Representative London Lamar.   
      
   That’s why Lamar along with 16 Democratic lawmakers are trying to turn that   
   statistic around.   
      
   “We can do a better job on the state level with how we handle this issue,   
   not only for Memphis, but what we do here is also impacting everything   
   statewide,” Lamar said. “So, it is the responsibility of the state level   
   to do more and help curb this    
   epidemic that we’re seeing in the city.”   
      
   In a letter to the Tennessee Department of Health Commissioner Dr. Ralph   
   Alvarado, the lawmakers ask several questions, including the impact of   
   legislation that requires minors to receive parental consent before testing   
   for HIV.   
      
   According to statistics from the Shelby County Health Department, new HIV   
   cases in the 15-24 age bracket are five times higher here than in the rest of   
   the country.   
      
   “HIV is a lifelong disease, there isn’t an official cure out there for   
   people. People are still dying from this disease,” Lamar said. “And   
   knowing that teens are the ones who are getting it at a higher rate than   
   anybody else means that their    
   whole life is going to be impacted.”   
      
   The letter also addressed concerns over the allocation of federal funding to   
   HIV and STI prevention programs, public health initiatives and community   
   engagement, especially for young people.   
      
   “We have to talk about it,” Lamar said. “We have to get over that   
   (mindset) that bible belt and that abstinence-based education is going to   
   work. It is not and has not been working.”   
      
   Rep. Lamar told WREG that they have not yet received any response to the   
   letter and she said she’s not confident that when that response comes, it   
   will align with what they’re fighting for.   
      
   This is why she urges people to consider these concerns when heading to the   
   polls. She vows to continue this fight until it’s no longer a concern in   
   Shelby County.   
      
   https://wreg.com/news/memphis-ranks-second-in-the-nation-in-high   
   st-number-of-new-hiv-cases/   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)