Researchers have observed a concerning trend in Australia where the mining boom is contributing to a rise in HIV infections among wealthy heterosexual miners and businessmen who travel to Asia for holidays. According to a recent national HIV-AIDS report, HIV infection rates in Australia have increased by almost 50 percent in the last eight years. The report from the National Centre in HIV Epidemiology and Clinical Research revealed that in 2007, Australia had 27,331 cases of HIV infection and 10,230 cases of AIDS. While homosexual men still make up the majority of new infections, a significant number of new cases are now being seen among heterosexual men in resource-rich states like Western Australia and Queensland. Many miners work long shifts away from home, working for several weeks straight followed by a few weeks off. Some researchers have found that during their time off, some miners are traveling to Asia and engaging in risky behavior, leading to an increase in new infections among heterosexual men from wealthy resource states. Don Baxter, executive director of the Australian Federation of AIDS, noted that men from Western Australia are likely visiting Southeast Asia, while those from Queensland are visiting Papua New Guinea, where experts fear an HIV-AIDS epidemic is imminent. Baxter also highlighted a 68 percent increase in infections among heterosexual males in Western Australia over the last three years, which is equivalent to the number of gay men infected in the state in 2007. Baxter stated that the government of Western Australia and the AIDS council are collaborating with mining companies to introduce safe sex education programs for miners. Health officials reported on Wednesday that a group of men in Cairns, Queensland had contracted HIV after having unprotected sex with women in Papua New Guinea. The Cairns Sexual Health Service disclosed that six men, aged between 47 and 66, tested positive for HIV in the last 10 months. Dr. Darren Russell, director of the Cairns Sexual Health Service, expressed concern that this cluster may be the beginning of a larger outbreak, as the HIV epidemic in Papua New Guinea is spreading more widely. This places these men at higher risk, with a likelihood of increasing numbers in the future. Australia's AIDS federation has urged the government to raise funding for AIDS prevention efforts in order to curb the increasing rate of infections. The state of New South Wales, which has a large homosexual population in Sydney, saw minimal changes in infection rates over the past ten years due to continued funding for safe sex programs. On the other hand, infection rates have significantly risen in states that have cut back on funding, such as Victoria and Queensland. Baxter stated that there is strong evidence that investing in these programs can help stabilize the rate of HIV infections.