Why Are HIV Rates So High in Russia?

Olga Vladimirova is 27 and lives in Saint Petersburg. She was diagnosed with HIV in 2011 after contracting the virus from her husband, who didn't know he was positive. She found out when she was tested while pregnant with her son. "After my diagnosis, I felt insane. I wanted to kill myself," she said. "At that time, I didn't know anything about the virus, only bits of information from the press and the TV. In Russia, there are problems with educating people about the disease. There are many myth...