Greece: HIV infections ease after spike

Health authorities in Greece say the number of HIV infections fell in 2013 for the first time since the start of the financial crisis.

In its annual report issued Tuesday, Greece's Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Keelpno, said the number of new infections nationwide fell to 920 last year from 1,188 in 2012—after a spike in cases among drug users eased, helped by more targeted prevention efforts.

Greece has struggled to maintain support for various public health programs amid steep cuts imposed under austerity programs during successive international bailouts that started in 2010—when the annual number of infections was 610.

The highest number of new cases last year occurred among gay men, followed by drug users.