DC Pushes Female Condoms to Fight HIV
According to the AP, Community groups are handing out 500,000 of female condoms, which are flexible pouches that are wider than male condoms but similar in length. The condoms are being handed out in beauty salons, barber shops, churches and restaurants. D.C. isn’t the only city to hand out female condoms - New York City did this in the past. In fact, New York City gave away 930,000 female condoms last year.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved female condoms in 1993, though they have never been widely available in the U.S. The D.C. Health Department came out with the outreach plan. A 2009 study found about 3 percent of the city’s population over the age of 12 has HIV or AIDS. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention considers anything over 1 percent of residents affected as a Severe Epidemic.
