The District was still defending its yellow-and-purple packaged condoms yesterday, but today Health Department officials are whistling a different tune. On the heels of news that the company that makes Trojans will donate 350,000 condoms to the city’s HIV/AIDS outreach prevention program, officials are finally throwing in the towel on the old batch, which have been derided for having weak packaging that reportedly falls apart. The condoms, which bear the slogan “Coming Together to Stop HIV in D.C.”, will be completely fazed out, reports the Post.
After a meeting yesterday, Health Department officials hope to buy or locate donations of other name brands besides Trojans in order to offer a selection of condoms to residents. They do not, however, have plans to recall the old condoms, and still affirm that those condoms are safe and effective. Today’s move rather amounts to an acknowledgment that people have lost confidence in the city’s condom program due to these allegations, and the city would like to move forward.
It’s the right decision, though it could have easily come a week earlier had officials not originally been so indignant about acknowledging that there was a problem, real or perceived. Still, it’s a relief to know that name brand condoms with which people are familiar and have confidence in will soon be offered to residents who need them in the city with the nation’s highest HIV/AIDS infection rate.