White House to hold HIV/AIDS community discussions

Aug 21, 2:20 PM (ET)

WASHINGTON (AP) - The White House will hold a series of community discussions on HIV and AIDS throughout the country beginning next week.

In a statement, President Barack Obama said HIV remains a serious challenge in the U.S. He said he wants the public's input in the discussions as he works to create a national strategy for reducing new cases and improving care for those infected.

The White House says there are 56,000 new HIV infections in the U.S. each year. The first community discussion will be held Tuesday in Atlanta.