AIDS Daily Summary November 30, 1993 The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National AIDS Clearinghouse makes available the following information as a public service only. Providing this information does not constitute endorsement by the CDC, the CDC Clearinghouse, or any other organization. Reproduction of this text is encouraged; however, copies may not be sold, and the CDC Clearinghouse should be cited as the source of this information. Copyright 1993, Information, Inc., Bethesda, MD "New York AIDS Fighter to Lead District Agency" Washington Post (11/30/93) P. A1 (Goldstein, Amy) After rejecting an informal offer less than two months ago to head the District of Columbia's troubled Agency for HIV/AIDS, New York AIDS fighter Frank Oldham Jr. has reconsidered. Mayor Sharon Pratt Kelly has scheduled a news conference for today to appoint Oldham as the agency's new chief. The former chief was fired amid allegations of impropriety and the agency has been plagued by internal disputes, bureaucratic delays, and a failure to spend millions of dollars in federal and local subsidies. Oldham, currently director of the Office of Gay and Lesbian Health Concerns in New York City, cited infighting and an inadequate salary as grounds for rejecting the earlier offer to lead the office. However, he says he never completely severed negotiations and last week met with the mayor, who assured him that AIDS is a priority. In addition, the new chief will receive a $70,000 annual salary, about $9,000 more than his predecessor. Oldham said one of his primary goals for Washington, D.C., is to diversify the city's strategies for preventing the spread of AIDS. He also wants to appoint local AIDS leaders as advisers to the agency, and to create a new office catering to the health of homosexuals. "Clinton Urged to Preach Compassion" Washington Post (11/30/93) P. A8 (Niebuhr, Gustav) An interfaith group of representatives from religious organizations asked President Clinton to preach compassion for AIDS patients and to acknowledge the expertise of religious bodies that care for the infected. The group of 13, including several Protestants, a Catholic priest, and a rabbi, met with Clinton during a private breakfast yesterday at the White House. According to interviews of five attendees, the discussion centered not on health care politics, but on the personal experiences of working with people with AIDS and how houses of worship try to help those who have the virus. "In many cases, it's the religious community in a city that's carrying the brunt of the load for caring for people with HIV/AIDS," said the Rev. Russell Dilliard, pastor of St. Augustine's Roman Catholic Church in Washington. "I came away feeling that we were heard...that here was the top government person in this country willing to spend private time with people who are serving the Lord, and he listened." After the meeting, the White House released a statement announcing that it will observe World AIDS Day on Wednesday by dimming its lights for 15 minutes at 7:45 p.m. in memory of those lost to the disease. Related Story: Washington Times (11/30) P. A4 "AIDS Panel to Slice Regulatory Red Tape" Wall Street Journal (11/30/93) P. B6 (Chase, Marilyn) In hopes of reversing a dearth of new AIDS drugs, the White House proposes the creation of a task force to delete the financial, regulatory, and proprietary obstacles that block companies from moving new drugs from the lab, through testing, and onto the market. The Task Force on AIDS Drug Development will combine the National Institutes of Health and the Food and Drug Administration with corporations and the communities most ravaged by the virus. Health and Human Services secretary Donna Shalala, who will announce the new federal task force today, says she will accept nominations for the 15-member team over the next month. The project is said to be the brainchild of FDA Commissioner David Kessler, who has long sought to eliminate regulatory red tape and accelerate approval of promising new AIDS drugs. Despite this fast track to market approval, Shalala points out a shortage of new drugs. "The sad fact remains that not a single New Drug Application for an [AIDS antiviral drug] is currently before the FDA," she notes in a prepared statement. "No matter how much we shorten the [development] pipeline, we cannot achieve our goal unless we start filling that pipeline with promising compounds." After a dozen years of the AIDS epidemic, treatment development has not progressed far beyond AZT and its sister drugs, DDI and DDC. "Kaposi's Sarcoma Linked to Volcanic Soil" Reuters (11/25/93) London--Kaposi's sarcoma, a cancer-like condition that affects about 18 percent of AIDS patients, may be otherwise triggered by contact with volcanic soil, according to a report by University of California medical professor John Ziegler. This disease of the lymphatic system, characterized by slow-growing tumors of blood vessels that appear on the skin as blue-brown lesions, also occurs without exposure to the AIDS virus, especially in men in certain parts of Africa. Ziegler reported in the Lancet medical journal that volcanic soil in areas where the disease is prevalent may be key. Kaposi's sarcoma is similar to a disease known as podoconiosis, a lymphatic limb disorder linked to barefoot contact with volcanic soil, said Ziegler. "The prevalence of both conditions in highland areas close to volcanoes suggests a shared pathogenic relationship to exposure to volcanic soils," explained Ziegler. The volcanic soil could damage the skin and tissue in the feet and legs, thus hindering local immunity to the infectious agent that is thought to trigger the abnormal increase in cells that causes Kaposi's sarcoma. "Condom Making Booms in Rubber-Rich Malaysia" Reuters (11/28/93) (Hamid, Abdul Jalil) Klang, Malaysia--With an annual production of one billion, Malaysia is now the world's third largest condom manufacturer, falling behind only the United States and India. Malaysia is also one of the world's major producers of rubber latex, which is used to make condoms and gloves. The AIDS crisis has fueled demand for both. Compared to just three in 1989, there are now eight condom manufacturers in Malaysia. These companies face challenges in marketing their products. Not only are condom advertisements banned from local newspapers and on television, but proposals to sell condoms in vending machines to shy Malaysians were rejected by religious groups who contended it would encourage free sex. "French Parliament Rejects Compulsory AIDS Tests" Reuters (11/24/93) Paris--A social affairs committee of the National Assembly, the lower house of the French Parliament, on Wednesday rejected a proposal to implement mandatory AIDS testing for all tuberculosis patients. The committee dropped the proposal from a bill which the Senate approved in October. The Assembly must ratify a bill before it can be made law. The national medical association argued that the proposal was unethical. The health minister, as well as human rights groups and physicians, also objected to the proposal. Some 10,000 people in France have TB. "French Anti-AIDS Agency Fails in Benetton Suit" Reuters (11/24/93) Paris--A Paris court dismissed a lawsuit filed against Italian clothier Benetton over the firm's latest shock advertising campaign. The French Agency for the Fight against AIDS (AFLS), a government organization, sought $177,000 in damages under a law prohibiting the exploitation of illness and suffering for commercial profit. The AFLS asked a judge to ban a Benetton poster displaying naked buttocks and limbs tattooed with the words "HIV positive." The court, however, ruled that it was not the agency's responsibility to defend AIDS patients, four of whom had complained to the government agency about Benetton's ads. "Ukraine Orders AIDS Tests for Foreign Residents" Reuters (11/26/93) Kiev, Ukraine--The former Soviet republic of Ukraine has mandated compulsory AIDS testing for foreigners working or studying there, reported Ukrinform, the official news agency. Those identified as HIV carriers could face expulsion, said the agency. "Honduras Has More Than Half of All Central American AIDS Cases" United Press International (11/24/93) Tegucigalpa--Although Honduras represents only 17 percent of the Central American population, the country accounts for 3,193 of the 5,600 reported cases of AIDS on the continent, according to a report by the World Health Organization. Officials predict that the number of infected persons will increase to 15,000 by the year 2000, cites Delia Tercero of the Honduran Health Ministry says. Tercero says Honduras, which was the first Central American country to report a case of AIDS, has a disproportionately high number of infections because "the population refuses to take preventive measures and those that do, do it incorrectly." "Jury Finds Waiter Was Fired Because He Had AIDS" Reuters (11/25/93) San Francisco--A jury decided in favor of a waiter who claimed he was fired from his job because he has AIDS. Following a two-week civil trial, the San Francisco Superior Court jury of eight women and four men awarded $30,000 in damages to Rolando Iglesias. The plaintiff, whose testimony was shown on videotape due to his bedridden condition, sued for punitive damages for emotional distress stemming from the discrimination against him. His former boss, 51-year-old Jeremiah Tower, said he fired Iglesias from his Stars restaurant because the waiter violated restaurant policy by not serving a customer a souffle when it was available. Tower's attorney claimed her client did not know Iglesias had AIDS.