A third of HIV diagnoses in Catalonia are made late, when patients have already suffered an opportunistic infection or when their immune system has already begun to deteriorate. The same is true for half of all diagnoses in Europe, as the World Health Organization (WHO) warned this week. These delays in diagnosis are precisely one of the main reasons experts cite for why diagnoses have not fallen below 3,000 new cases annually over the last fifteen years. Dr. Joaquín Burgos, from the Infectious Diseases Department at Vall d'Hebron Hospital, explains in an interview with ACN on the occasion of World AIDS Day, commemorated every year on December 1st, that the delay in diagnosis is one of the "main problems" that persists with the HIV virus. On the one hand, because these people have had the infection for years without knowing it and have been able to transmit the disease. Even if they haven't had any opportunistic infections, Burgos adds, and even if patients begin treatment after diagnosis and their condition improves, the time they have spent with HIV "has an impact on future comorbidities," meaning additional chronic health problems. On the other hand, the doctor adds, the prognosis for patients has changed radically in the last forty years: it has gone from being a death sentence for many people to being able to have an undetectable viral load and a quality of life equivalent to the rest of the population. Meanwhile, Burgos points out, challenges remain, such as breaking the stigma, achieving greater social awareness, and ensuring that the healthcare system doesn't miss opportunities for diagnostic testing. "There are what are called missed opportunities, when a person has been through the healthcare system with a condition associated with HIV infection, but hasn't been offered a test," he explains.

"I feel like a lot of time has passed and we've all grown up," he says with a nostalgic smile. Julia Ducournau (Paris, 1983) recalling his first visit to the Sitges Film Festival to present his debut film, Raw, one of the sensations of the 2016 edition. "I have great memories of the festival, I had a great time," he adds. Nine years and a Palme d'Or later (for Titane), Ducournau is still that tall and magnetic young woman who, due to her attitude and cinematic tastes, could be mistaken for the festival audience, but now she opens Sitges with Alpha. She's left her jeans and t-shirts in the closet and wherever she goes she's surrounded by a group of fans and cameras, as befits one of the star directors of new European cinema.

"I've had to completely change my life. It doesn't seem normal to me to have become infected after years of waiting for treatment. It's a problem with the healthcare system," complains Martí [a fictitious name to protect his identity], who has been on the waiting list for the HIV preventative pill, a treatment called "The Pill." Finally, he ended up getting infected, and like him, at least twenty other people have become infected because of him. lack of accessibility in treatment, according to the BCN Checkpoint, the leading center for infection control in Catalonia. Sources consulted by ARA warn that either there is greater investment to expedite access to PrEP, or there will be more cases.

The State Public Employment Service (SEPE) offers a monthly stipend of €570 for unemployed individuals between the ages of 30 and 55 who have exhausted their contributory unemployment benefits. This new stipend has been available since April and aims to financially support those with a monthly income below 75% of the minimum wage.

They ask us for a sustainable future, encouraging us to buy electric vehicles, install solar panels, aerothermal or geothermal systems, or whatever produces energy without emitting CO2 because the planet is going to hell. To get us to part with the money, they entice us with public aid that, in theory, makes investments profitable that otherwise wouldn't be. However, behind these promises lies a bureaucratic tangle that turns aid into deception and hope into frustration.

A Barcelona City Council employee allegedly diverted social assistance funds to bank accounts other than those intended for them. According to Catalunya Ràdio and confirmed by municipal sources consulted by ARA, the employee is from the Municipal Institute of Social Services (IMSS), who has been subject to disciplinary proceedings and has already been suspended from her duties and removed from her job. The city council, which has not specified the amount allegedly diverted, has already brought the case to court.

New economic boost for trade and crafts. The Department of Business and Employment has announced a new help line endowed with 9.1 million euros for 2025. This call is part of the Competitiveness, Growth and Innovation Plan 2024-2028, a strategic initiative that seeks to strengthen trade, crafts, and fashion in Catalonia.

About Salvador Illa's announcement, which came from the government of Pere Aragonès, to provide aid to families with two children who earn 3,700 euros between them, ARA readers have been left scratching their heads. "3,700 euros is not enough? 500 euros, which they will have to pay back at the end of the quarter. So, that's about 3,000. That leaves 1,250. The self-employed, especially if they live outside Barcelona, ​​need a car for work, which will cover many miles on the car loan, 100 on public transport, and gasoline. Toilets, soap for washing and washing, frozen foods, legumes, diapers, meat, canned goods, sausages... that's at least 100 euros. Let's imagine, and it's quite imaginative, that with this budget they can also buy fish or some candy for Saturday. Extras, like changing the car tires, city tax, a repair... have to come from here. Extra payments, in summer and at Christmas if they have a holiday, they don't get any savings capacity for the dry months and can't take vacations. Two children are in diapers and do extracurricular activities, a support teacher.

This Tuesday, the Council of Ministers approved a decree with some of the measures Pedro Sánchez announced to mitigate the economic impact of Donald Trump's tariff policy on businesses and workers. Although the European Union is doing its part to reach an agreement with the United States that would provide a solution to the trade war, the State, with the aim of sending a message of reassurance to the most affected sectors, has already promised the mobilization of up to 14.1 billion eurosSome are budget items previously announced, such as the Moves III Plan, while others are being reoriented or approved anew. Of the money announced, today's Council of Ministers activated 7.72 billion.

"It's an insult to all of us who have been waiting for years. We just want to take care of our health. I feel like I could live my sexuality much more peacefully," explains with resignation Alexis, one of the people waiting to start taking the HIV preventative pill, a treatment called pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP). He is 27 years old and has been on the waiting list at the BCN Checkpoint for over a year and a half. This reference center for infection control in Catalonia has around 4,000 people waiting to start treatment, but the wait time is already two years. Professionals complain that they don't have enough resources to treat everyone and lament that the process is taking so long that they are already detecting the first infected people among the users waiting.

In just two months in office, the Donald Trump administration has jeopardized the progress made in eradicating AIDS over the past 25 years and has put global health organizations on alert. This Monday, the United Nations quantified the impact of the virus. cuts to the US cooperation fund USAID in the prevention and treatment of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and have concluded that this can lead to up to 2,000 infections per day.

Almost two weeks after being approved by the Government, the Official Journal of the Generalitat de Catalunya (DOGC) has published the conditions to qualify for the direct aid from the Generalitat as part of its €618m plan to help workers affected by furlough (ERTE), small businesses, microenterprises, cooperatives and the self-employed. Here is how and when to apply.