| On
November 19th, NAHC released a special issue of the international
scientific journal AIDS and Behavior.
This journal
includes groundbreaking research from the Centers from Disease
Control (CDC) and others showing a demonstrable correlation between
a person's housing status and his likelihood of transmitting or
getting HIV.
The first
publication of its kind, this special issue of AIDS and Behavior
includes 18 peer-reviewed articles on the relationship of housing
status and HIV risk and health outcomes, including a policy
perspective from former HUD Secretary Henry Cisneros. Research
studies reported in the issue show that:
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Homeless or
unstably housed persons were two to six times more likely to
“have recently used hard drugs, shared needles or exchanged sex”
than similar low-income persons who were stably housed.
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Receipt of
housing assistance enabled homeless persons with substance use
and mental health problems to achieve stability over time and to
cease or reduce both drug related and sexual risk behaviors.
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Over a
12-year period, housing status and receipt of housing assistance
consistently predicted entry and retention in HIV medical care,
regardless of demographics, drug use, health and mental health
status, or receipt of other services.
These and other
findings reported in the special issue add to the growing evidence
that housing itself independently reduces risk of HIV infection and
improves the health of persons living with HIV.
Abstracts of
special issue articles are freely available through
SpringerLink. Copies of
AIDS and Behavior were purchased by a donor and NAHC is making
them available at a nominal shipping/handling charge.
Click
here to purchase a copy of the special issue journal.
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