This has been a big year for the HIV community. One key event was June 5 — which marked 30 years since the first reported cases of AIDS in the United States. As one of the many efforts to recognize this important milestone, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) developed a series of videos featuring interviews with various federal and community HIV leaders. Highlights from each of the videos were used to create a compilation video, 30 Years of HIV in the US, which premiered at the June 8 event hosted by HHS and Secretary Sebelius, “Commemorating 30 Years of Leadership in the Fight Against HIV/AIDS”.  For the next few weeks, we’ll be revealing an in-depth interview with each leader on our AIDS.gov blog and various social network channels.

First up is a video featuring Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). In this video, Dr. Fauci discusses the history of HIV/AIDS in the U.S.– where we’ve been and where we’re going. He not only looks back on the epidemic but also addresses the current situation. He also reminds us that there are still 2.6 million new HIV infections a year globally and that just because there are drugs available to help treat HIV, there is “no reason at all to think, it’s OK to get HIV-infected. It’s not. It’s a very serious disease”.

Stay tuned for our post next week when we reveal the next video! Looking for other information related to 30 years of AIDS? Check out these resources.