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September 1990 (Volume 68)
Quarterly Article
Carol Levine
Nancy Neveloff Dubler
Sep 14, 2026
Sep 9, 2026
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Although most babies born to women with HIV will not develop AIDS, many health professionals and segments of the public object when these women will not forgo pregnancy. Such a view fails to consider fully the cultural, political, and socioeconomic contexts in which seropositive women make reproductive choices. HIV infection is only one of many conditions of chronic disease that can be passed from a woman to her fetus, and should not be singled out as a target for coercive policies. Rather, government and society have an obligation to empower women to protect themselves against HIV infection in the first place, and to offer them options for self-esteem and achievement independent of reproduction.
Author(s): Carol Levine; Nancy Neveloff Dubler
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Volume 68, Issue 3 (pages 321–351) Published in 1990