HIV, STI, Viral Hepatitis, and Harm Reduction Digest
September 21, 2022
NACCHO News and Announcements
Seeking a Program Analyst for NACCHO’s HIV, STI, and Viral Hepatitis Team
NACCHO’s HIV, STI, Viral Hepatitis, and Harm Reduction program aims to strengthen the capacity of local health departments to prevent, control, and manage HIV, STIs, viral hepatitis, and harm reduction by providing technical and capacity building assistance, developing and disseminating tools and resources, and facilitating information exchange, peer engagement, and learning. The program contributes to NACCHO’s overall mission to be a leader, partner, catalyst, and voice for local health departments and supports NACCHO’s work to advocate on behalf of local health departments with federal policymakers for adequate resources, appropriate public health legislation, and sensible policies to address the myriad of challenges facing communities.
This Program Analyst will primarily support projects and activities within STI program portfolio working with the CDC’s Division of STD Prevention but may do some activities across the broader HIV, STI, Viral Hepatitis, and Harm Reduction program portfolio. The ideal candidate will possess interest and experience in the prevention, care, and treatment of STIs as well as an understanding of HIV, harm reduction, and/or viral hepatitis (primarily hepatitis B and C), as well as health department programming, the healthcare system and public health infrastructure, public health policy, and the provision of technical and capacity building assistance.
Please click here to learn more: https://naccho.hrmdirect.com/employment/job-opening.php?req=2213475job
And to apply: https://naccho.clearcompany.com/careers/jobs/968b3006-456b-c8a0-8258-4be87cfaf369/apply?source=2213475-CS-2909
Webinar: White House Monkeypox Update and Listening Session
NACCHO would like to invite local health department staff to join us on Tuesday, September 27th at 3:00pm ET, to hear from Robert Fenton, the White House National Monkeypox Response Coordinator, and Dr. Demetre Daskalakis, the White House National Monkeypox Response Deputy Coordinator as they disscuss the state of monkeypox.
Mr. Fenton and Dr. Daskalakis will provide participants with a status update on the monkeypox response as well as listen to your peers from affected jurisdictions speak on their experiences with the Monkeypox response. There will be an opportunity for Q&A and discussion towards the end of the session.
If you are unable to attend, this session will be recorded, and a recording will be distributed.
*Disclaimer: This listening session is intended for local health department staff ONLY. Please do not forward the invite outside of your health department. Press and media are not invited to this call.
Register for this event at the following link.
HIV, STI, and Hepatitis Resources and News
Viral Hepatitis Surveillance Report- United States, 2020
“Today, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published Viral Hepatitis Surveillance Report— United States, 2020. This report includes surveillance and mortality data related to hepatitis A, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C, as well as outcome data from CDC’s Perinatal Hepatitis B Prevention Program. CDC also released the 2022 Viral Hepatitis National Progress Report, which provides an update on progress toward achieving established goals for the prevention of viral hepatitis transmission, disease, and associated mortality. These reports are published exclusively in digital format to improve accessibility for our partners and the public.”
CDC Viral Hepatitis Update
“Over 2 million adults in the United States have hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, and new infections continue to rise. Left untreated, hepatitis C can cause advanced liver disease, liver cancer, and death. Hepatitis C is curable in more than 95% of cases. People who test positive for hepatitis C should be treated with direct-acting antiviral (DAA) medications to prevent liver damage and further spread.
An estimated 40 percent of adults in the United States are unaware of their infection with hepatitis C. To increase the number people tested and treated, CDC released updated CDC Recommendations for Hepatitis C Screening Among Adults in April 2020, following the March 2020 release of an updated US Preventive Services Task Force Final Recommendation Statement: Hepatitis C Virus Infection in Adolescents and Adults: Screening | United States Preventive Services Taskforce (uspreventiveservicestaskforce.org). Both recommend hepatitis C screening of all adults at least once in their lifetime and of pregnant persons during each pregnancy, as well as periodic testing for everyone with risk factors.”
STD Leaders Condemn Dangerous Court Ruling on PrEP and Other Preventive Services | NCSD (ncsddc.org)
On Wednesday, a Texas judge ruled that insurance coverage for pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV prevention under the Affordable Care Act violates the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, and further called into question the legality of the expert panel that determines which preventive services must be covered by insurance plans. Coverage of PrEP and prevention services for sexually transmitted infections (STIs) have been integral to the nation’s efforts to end the epidemics of STIs and HIV. Click the link above to read NCSD’s response.
News to Note
CDC Opens Applications for Monkeypox Vaccine Equity Pilot Program
Today, local, state, and territorial health departments, as well as tribal governments and local non-governmental organizations, can partner together and begin submitting requests to access monkeypox vaccine through the recently announced Monkeypox Vaccine Equity Pilot Program. This new pilot program is intended to reach populations that may face barriers to monkeypox vaccination, which may include differences in language, location of vaccination sites, vaccine hesitancy, mistrust of government, lack of access to on-line scheduling technology, accessibility/disability issues, immigration status, and stigma.
“We have a responsibility to address inequities that have been highlighted by this outbreak, and this program will help make a difference,” said CDC Director Rochelle Walensky, M.D., M.P.H. “This outbreak is affecting members of the gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men community at an unequal rate, and it has disproportionately affected the Black and Hispanic communities. Distributing monkeypox vaccines in a way that addresses and reduces these disparities is the goal of this program and is a high priority for CDC and our public health partners.”
Up to 50,000 doses of JYNNEOS vaccine have been allocated for the Monkeypox Vaccine Equity Pilot program. Successful proposals will demonstrate new, innovative ways to reach populations that are most affected by monkeypox based on local or national data. Projects should prioritize groups:
- with risk factors that increase their chances of getting or spreading monkeypox,
- who are over-represented among monkeypox cases and less likely to be vaccinated, and
- whose barriers to vaccination may be addressed by the activities proposed.
Special consideration will be given to projects addressing disparities among Black/African American and Hispanic/Latino gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (MSM) and transgender people who face barriers in accessing vaccines. Examples include pop-ups and other events associated with community-based organizations (CBOs) or clinics that work with MSM and transgender people, especially those who are Black/African American and Hispanic/Latino, who are not reached by current allocations or vaccine administration channels.
This new pilot, which is in addition to the large event program, seeks to break down barriers and address disparities in communities where differences in monkeypox vaccination have been identified. Together, these two pilots allow the federal government to reach as many people as possible with monkeypox vaccination. If a pilot successfully reaches the intended populations, the jurisdiction will be encouraged to adapt this model for broader implementation with future federally allocated vaccine distributions. This process will allow CDC and its public health partners to determine new, successful methods of delivering care to the communities most at need, which will help alleviate the effects of the current outbreak and potentially develop repeatable methods that can be used to avoid these inequities in the future as well.
Local health departments and organizations interested in applying should contact their state or territorial health departments or tribal governments. More information, including details on the application, can be found here.
Is Monkeypox an STD? Experts Say No.
New CDC Data: STD Rates Shot up in 2021
Upcoming Opportunities
Webinar with Dr. Maria Trent (Tuesday, September 27th)
Live Webinar with Dr. Maria Trent - John Hopkins University
Tuesday September 27th
10AM PT / 1PM ET
Learning Objectives
- Review applicable CDC Screening Guidelines for common STIs in young females
- Examine the importance of sexual health education for sexually active adolescent girls
- Evaluate effective STI testing methods and sexual health education strategies
To register for this informative webinar, click register and follow the registration instructions.
https://www.visbymedical.com/resources/webinars/
National HPV Vaccination Roundtable National Meeting: Vax like a Champion: September 28th, 2022
“Join us for the National HPV Vaccination Roundtable National Meeting: Vax like a Champion. We will be reviewing HPV Vaccination stats, celebrating your home runs, and talking strategy to increase our HPV Vaccination plays. Connect virtually with the HPV Dream Team’s roster as we continue our work together on the field! Click Register to step up to the plate.”
Doxycycline for STI Prevention: Evidence and Current Research
Friday, October 7, 2022
10:00am–11:30am ET
2:00pm–3:30pm GMT
Register here: https://tinyurl.com/doxypep
Very high STI prevalence is being observed globally. Doxycycline post-exposure prophylaxis (dPEP) has been proposed as an STI prevention strategy to reduce chlamydia, syphilis, and possibly gonorrhea, and trials are ongoing among cisgender gay and bisexual men as well as African cisgender women. Join us to hear the latest scientific data and discuss implications for policy and program.
Confirmed speakers:
- Dr. Connie Celum, University of Washington
- Dr. Victor Omollo, Kenya Medical Research Institute
- Dr. Jenell Stewart, University of Washington
- David C. Harvey, National Coalition of STD Directors
ORISE Fellow Opportunity
The Division of STD Prevention’s Office of Communications, Policy, Planning, and Partnerships is recruiting an ORISE Fellow. This individual will be supporting division partnerships and have the opportunity to collaborate on some of our demonstration projects. Please feel free to share with anyone you think might be a good candidate. For more information see the job posting below.
https://www.zintellect.com/Opportunity/Details/CDC-NCHHSTP-2022-0328
