White House names new head of AIDS policy office

Thu Feb 26, 2009 10:23am EST

WASHINGTON Feb 26 (Reuters) - President Barack Obama named a Georgetown University health policy expert to head the White House AIDS policy office and coordinate efforts to reduce new HIV infections in the United States, officials said on Thursday.

Jeffrey Crowley, who previously worked for the National Association of People with AIDS activist group, was appointed to head the Office of National AIDS Policy, the White House said.

About 1.1 million Americans are infected with the human immunodeficiency virus that causes AIDS, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The CDC last year said more Americans are becoming infected each year than previously estimated, with 56,300 new HIV infections in 2006. Previous estimates put that number at about 40,000 a year.

Crowley comes to the job after serving at the Georgetown University's Health Policy Institute. He is a former U.S. Peace Corps volunteer, serving as a science teacher in Swaziland.

"Jeffrey Crowley brings the experience and expertise that will help our nation address the ongoing HIV/AIDS crisis and help my administration develop policies that will serve Americans with disabilities," Obama said in a statement.

(Reporting by Will Dunham; Editing by Maggie Fox)



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