Twelve countries
now call for airline HIV tax

A dozen countries are now supporting a plan by French president Jacques Chirac to impose a tax on airline tickets to raise money to fight AIDS in developing nations, Agence France-Presse reports. Officials in Brazil, Chile, Cyprus, Congo, France, Ivory Coast, Jordan, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Mauritius, Nicaragua, and Norway all support implementing the airline tax. The United Kingdom, which does not plan to implement a new airline tax, says it will instead divert money from an existing surcharge on airline tickets to fight diseases in poor countries. France will be the first country to implement the tax beginning in July, which will range from $1 for coach seats to $47 for first-class tickets. The French tax is expected to raise about $239 million per year. (Advocate.com)