State police announce enforcement for unsafe driving

MICHIGAN — The Michigan State Police will engage in heightened traffic safety enforcement aimed at unsafe driving behaviors by commercial motor vehicle and passenger vehicle drivers during “Operation Safe Driver Week,” which began Sunday.

“Operation Safe Driver Week” is sponsored by the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance, in partnership nationally with government, industry and safety organizations. CVSA’s “Operation Safe Driver Week” was created to help decrease the number of deaths and injuries resulting from crashes involving large trucks, buses and passenger vehicles due to unsafe driving behaviors like speeding and distracted and aggressive driving.

“We continue to work on traffic initiatives to reduce deadly accidents involving CMVs. “Operation Safe Driver Week” is another great example of a program that focuses on addressing this problem and moving Michigan Toward Zero Deaths,” said Capt. Michael A. Krumm, commander of the MSP Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Division.

This effort is part of the department’s participation in Towards Zero Deaths, which is the U.S. highway safety vision. It unites stakeholders from engineering, enforcement, education and emergency medical services with the common goal of reducing traffic fatalities to zero.

People may learn more about the efforts at towardzerodeaths.org.

Cold case sexual assault team receives DOJ grant

LANSING — Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette announced Thursday that his department has been awarded a competitive three-year grant from the U.S. Department of Justice, Office on Violence Against Women, for a third time.

The “Improving Criminal Justice Response to Sexual Assault, Dating Violence, and Stalking Grant Program” will support the department’s sexual assault unit lead by Assistant Attorney General Angela Povilaitis. The unit also includes a special investigator and victim advocate.

“AAG Povilaitis’ efforts are crucial to our Department and her work for the victims of these horrible crimes has a lasting impact,” Schuette said. “I commend her efforts in receiving this grant for the Sexual Assault Unit, and for the department’s ongoing effort to deliver justice for victims of sexual assault.”

First received in 2011, then 2014, and now 2017, the grant will support the sexual assault unit and its efforts to investigate, prosecute, and assist county prosecutors on sexual assault, domestic violence, and stalking cases throughout Michigan. In addition to responding to requests from elected prosecutors, the unit also will investigate sexual assault cold cases identified though a monthly CODIS hit list disseminated to prosecutors.

The award is the result of a joint project with the Michigan Domestic and Sexual Violence Prevention and Treatment Board.

The department recognizes Assistant Attorney General Angela Povilaitis for her outstanding dedication and the entire sexual assault unit for delivering justice for victims of sexual assault.

MDHHS supports HIV Prevention Campaign

LANSING — The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services joins the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Alliance of State and Territorial AIDS Directors and other leaders in the fight to end the HIV epidemic by supporting the prevention campaign, Undetectable = Untransmittable (U=U).

Based on the emerging research, the scientific consensus is that a person living with HIV taking antiretroviral therapy as prescribed with an undetectable viral load in their blood sample for at least six months has a negligible risk of transmitting HIV sexually.

Viral load refers to the amount of HIV in a blood sample of a person living with HIV. Most often, the higher the viral load, the greater the likelihood an individual with HIV will transmit HIV. ART must be taken daily to achieve viral suppression and maintain untransmittable status.

During 2016, two key studies (PARTNER and HPTN) were released, showing that individuals living with HIV, who have undetectable viral loads, do not sexually transmit HIV to their HIV-negative partners.

“Research continues to demonstrate that ART is a highly effective strategy to keep people living with HIV healthier longer and virally suppressed, thus reducing the transmission of HIV,” said Eden Wells, MDHHS chief medical executive. “We have key partnerships with agencies throughout Michigan to support programs that help with ART access and adherence, and help individuals with HIV stay in medical care to achieve viral suppression.”

While viral suppression prevents the sexual transmission of HIV, condoms and/or pre-exposure prophylaxis use are also important HIV prevention strategies. PrEP is a once-a-day pill for HIV-negative individuals that, when taken daily, helps reduce the risk of HIV transmission. Using condoms correctly and during every sex act helps to protect against pregnancy and other sexually transmitted infections, such as syphilis, gonorrhea or chlamydia.

For more information on U=U visit: cdc.gov/hiv/library/dcl/dcl/092717.html and michigan.gov/hivstd.

Individuals who have HIV and would like assistance getting into care can visit michigan.gov/survivehiv.