Arkansas lets HIV-Positive fighter compete in bout

According to Dan Rafael of espn.com, the state of Arkansas let an HIV-Positive fighter compete in a bout on November 11th.

ABC president Mike Mazzulli told ESPN on Monday that he called the health department in Arkansas, which is involved in overseeing medical exams for boxers in the state, to inform the state of about the fighter’s HIV-positive status.

“I personally called a representative of the health department and informed them of the concerns related to them having a fighter on a card with HIV,” said Mazzulli, adding he knows the identity of the fighter, but did not want to make it public in order to protect the person’s medical privacy. “They said to me, ‘The fighters on the card will be tested.’ My assumption was that they were not tested because the individual fought. This individual is suspended in Florida because of a positive HIV test and it was submitted to [official boxing record-keeper] Fight Fax, our federal registry, which is required by federal law.”

“The Department asked for and acquired blood work prior to the fight for all fighters on the card that evening. All fighters provided test results that indicated all tested negative for HIV,” Robert Brech, general counsel for the Arkansas Department of Health, told ESPN in an email. “The matter is under further investigation at this time.”

“If Arkansas had checked the suspension list, this individual would not have fought because this individual was suspended in Florida,” Mazzulli said. “On the Fight Fax it states, ‘Fighter is suspended, please contact Florida commission.’ If they followed proper protocol the fighter would not have been able to fight in Arkansas even if the fighter was tested, because our national registry states he was on suspension. The suspension can only be removed by Florida.”

according to the Arkansas regulations ‘a positive test for the presence of infectious diseases shall result in an immediate suspension of the licensee’s license.’ Thus under the regulations, since Arkansas had actual knowledge of the HIV positive result, the fighter should not have been allowed to engage in a bout and his license should have been suspended.”

Mazzulli posed a few questions in his letter that he said Arkansas officials have not answered:

• Why was an HIV positive fighter allowed to compete?

• Were the opponent, referee and cornermen informed so they could make an informed choice as to whether to participate in the event? Have they been informed to date?

• Was the physician who cleared the boxer to fight informed of his HIV-positive status?

• Did the fighter lie on his license application? (A secondary question, as the commission reportedly had actual knowledge of his tests from Florida.)

“This is one of the most flagrant health and safety violations and may be even a violation of Arkansas’ statute regarding immunodeficiency,” Mazzulli wrote. “This situation is one of the most serious we have seen in many years, and hence we feel compelled to bring this matter to your attention. … Please allow the ABC to assist Arkansas in insuring such a violation does not ever happen again.”