White House AIDS Chief Addresses NEAC Conference

November 5, 2002

AUSTIN – Episcopalians and Lutherans concerned about HIV/AIDS met in Austin, Texas, October 11-12 for "New Directions 2002," a joint conference of the National Episcopal AIDS Coalition (NEAC) and the Lutheran AIDS Network (LANet).

Featured speaker for the gathering was Dr. Joseph O'Neill, newly appointed director of the White House Office of National AIDS Policy. He is responsible for guiding national health policy on HIV/AIDS care and treatment, health care financing, and access for medically underserved populations. A member of the faculty at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, he previously served as acting director of the Office of HIV/AIDS Policy in the Department of Health and Human Services and was associate administrator in the HIV/AIDS Bureau of the Health Resources and Services Administration, where he ran the Ryan White CARE Act program.

The NEAC conference was the first "faith based" event that O'Neill had addressed since taking his position with the White House in July. O'Neill, whose two brothers are Jesuit priests, congratulated those present for their work in the area of HIV/AIDS and spoke about how government has learned from members of the faith community. He mentioned that government was "late to the fight" against HIV/AIDS and, once there, saw members of the faith community deeply involved in care and support. O'Neill also spoke to the need to do more to combat HIV/AIDS overseas.

Sessions included discussions of HIV prevention for persons over 50; AIDS and the spirit; an overview of a Dallas needle exchange program; the progress of the Latino AIDS Prevention Project in Los Angeles; fund-raising for AIDS service organizations; the impact of HIV/AIDS on American rural communities; and how to rebuild diocesan HIV/AIDS task forces and make them more effective resources.

Though death rates for U.S. men from HIV/AIDS have gone down 18 percent, death rates for U.S. women have gone up 3 percent. AIDS is now the leading cause of death for U.S. Latina women aged 25-44.

Episcopal News Service