The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday that it has launched a program to build an HIV infection prevention system through schools, family and social networks to tackle the challenge of AIDS head on.
Ivory Lin (林宜慧), secretary-general of the Persons with HIV/AIDS Rights Advocacy Association of Taiwan, wrote in a letter to the Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister paper) on Saturday that the government should not scapegoat HIV prevention efforts after public comments the funding for rabies vaccines is lacking because the proportion of HIV/AIDS medication funds is “so high.”
Lin added that sex education should be taught to parents also, “enabling [the latter] to face up to the reality of HIV.”
The CDC said that according to the disease surveillance data, the spread of HIV in the country is mostly associated with “unsafe sex practices among young people and homosexuals.”
Since the risk of HIV transmission can only be contained if society understands the disease, long-term disease prevention education has to be put in place, the disease control agency said.
The government’s new strategy for the targeted groups is to provide related education via social media, community centers and the Internet to broaden the screening network, upgrade the medical support for people infected with the disease and to strengthen early detection and infection control, the CDC said.
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it
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