Care for HIV immigrants lacking in U.S.

MEXICO CITY, Aug. 5 (UPI) -- Human rights activists told AIDS researchers that HIV-positive immigrants detained in the United States don't get adequate medical care for their conditions.

Human Rights Watch said Tuesday the U.S. Department of Homeland Security isn't doing enough to either treat the disease or prevent its spread in detention centers.

"Unless Homeland Security reforms its treatment systems, more immigrants will die or fall sick for no good reason." Megan McLemore of Human Rights Watch's Health and Human Rights Program told the 2008 International AIDS Conference in Mexico City.

The organization said in a written statement that it has been pressuring the Homeland Security Department for more than a year to address the issue but, despite congressional hearings and a lengthy internal review, the agency has refused to adopt formal standards for AIDS and HIV care and says its current measures are adequate.