SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) -- The travel ban on HIV positive immigrants and travelers has been in effect since 1987 when health officials listed HIV as dangerous and contagious. Mark Cloutier, CEO of the San Francisco AIDS Foundation, is currently attending the International AIDS conference in Mexico City. He said that Europeans on their way to Mexico often travel through the United States where they are required to go through immigration.
“So all the people wanting to come to this conference were not able to because they were not able to get transit visas because they have HIV.”
This past week, President Bush signed a $48 billion global AIDS relief bill that also repeals a ban on HIV positive immigrants and tourists entering the country. The repeal of restrictions is likely to cause debate.
“The opposition to this has been framed around the cost.”
However, Cloutier did emphasize that the relief bill makes a substantial contribution for people to get treatment in their country of origin.
“[The bill is] a huge step… it’s been an embarrassment among the academic community in the United States that we still have this unnecessary barrier.”
According to Cloutier, the United States was the last country in the developed world that banned HIV positive visitors and immigrants.
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KCBS' Margie Shafer reports
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