More Gay Men Having Unprotected Sex, NYT Reports
As part of its continuing "AIDS at 20" series, the New York Times reports on how gay men are "spurn[ing]" AIDS prevention messages and increasingly engaging in unprotected sex. According to the Times, condom use to prevent the spread of HIV was once a "rallying call" for the gay community, but is now the subject of "controversy and debate." Surveys indicate that unprotected anal intercourse among gay men "young and old" is becoming more common in bars, sex clubs and circuit parties and in one-on-one encounters that are often arranged over the Internet. In an era where fewer people are dying from AIDS-related complications due to effective drug combinations; the risk of infection can be reduced by taking "post-exposure prevention" medications; and some HIV-positive men "argue" that they are not "obligat[ed]" to help prevent HIV's spread, public health experts face a "new and perplexing challenge" with "hyper-vigilance ... no longer always an easy sell." The full article is available at http://www.nytimes.com/2001/08/19/health/19RISK.html (Goode, New York Times, 8/19).