Earlier this week, I attended a technical assistance meeting sponsored by the National Association of State and Territorial AIDS DirectorsExit Disclaimer (NASTAD) and the National Coalition of STD DirectorsExit Disclaimer (NCSD) about reaching gay men using the Internet. Engaging in a dialogue on how gay men are using the Internet and its impact on HIV transmission, testing and care is something that, as the Director of HIV.gov, is a top priority and a topic that we'll be exploring more in the weeks to come.
We laud the efforts of NASTAD and CDC for their leadership and thank Dave Kern and Stephen Adelson from NASTAD for inviting us to participate in this meeting. We also appreciate Rachel Kachur's efforts in developing the National Guidelines for Internet-based STD and HIV PreventionExit Disclaimer (PDF, 46 KB). And speaking of STDs, April is National STD Awareness Month - check out the GYT: “Get Yourself Tested†campaign to increase STD testing among young people.