Newsweek Examines Role of New Female Condom in Efforts To Combat Spread of HIV in D.C.

March 11, 2010 — Women's health experts are watching closely to see whether a recent grant to provide no-cost female condoms in Washington, D.C., will "really make a difference" in the area's HIV/AIDS rate among women, Newsweek's Kate Dailey writes. The goal of the program is to empower women to take control of their own health and safety. The $500,000 grant from the MAC AIDS Fund will allow health centers in the district to promote and distribute the latest version of the female condom, FC2, which FDA approved in March 2009. The female condom can be inserted several hours before intercourse, allowing a woman to protect herself without having to persuade the man with whom she's sleeping to change his behavior. The program aims to reduce the district's HIV transmission rate, particularly among women. HIV is the leading cause of death among black women ages 24 through 39 in D.C. About three percent of black women in D.C. have HIV, compared with a rate of 0.7% for the U.S. population.

FC2 "offers several advantages over the original," including a lower cost of 82 cents per condom, Dailey writes. Shannon Hader, director of the HIV/AIDS administration at the D.C. Department of Health, said the lower cost "reduced wholesale prices to about a third of the initial price, which made it feasible to add onto our condom-distribution program," even after the MAC grant ends. The new female condom also is expected to be quieter and more comfortable than the original.

According to Dailey, although female condoms "have proved to be one of the best ways of reducing HIV transmission among women," their use "never took off." A 2002 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study found that only 2% of women in the U.S. had ever used the female condom, and experts believe the rate has not changed significantly in the years since, Dailey writes. Vanessa Cullins, medical director for the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, said, "More than likely, giving out the condoms and making them easily available is not going to be enough for a lot of people." Cullins added, "Some people will take advantage of the fact that the condoms are easily available, but others will need to have a conversation, not only with partners and potential partners, but also with friends about female condoms."

Dailey continues, "It won't be immediately apparent as to whether this partnership will lower HIV rates in the district," but the Department of Health "has established some short-term benchmarks of progress." Hader said, "We hope that by adding yet another tool, not just more people will be using female condoms, but that people will become more regular users of any condom in general" (Dailey, Newsweek, 3/10).