Date: Mon, 03 Oct 1994 09:08:34 -0400 (EDT) From: "JOHN FANNING, CDC NAC" AIDS Daily Summary October 03, 1994 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 1994, Information, Inc., Bethesda, MD ************************************************************ "Case Against Law Firm Has a Hollywood Ring" "HIV-Positive Candidate Thinks Positive" "Canada Red Cross Wants Overhaul of Blood System" "$15 Million Study Set to Improve HIV/AIDS Care" "Man with AIDS Fighting Clinic's 'No Pets' Policy" "Health Care Hell" "Still on the Fast Track" "Hot Zones, Cold Chills: The Coming Plague" "AIDS Experts Look East" "AIDSLine: Hope for Cryptosporidiosis Sufferers?" ************************************************************ "Case Against Law Firm Has a Hollywood Ring" Philadelphia Inquirer (10/03/94) P. B1; Slobodzian, Joseph A. Jury selection begins today in the trial of a discrimination suit against a leading local law firm by an anonymous lawyer who claims that his promising career was cut short when he was fired after the firm learned that he was infected with HIV. The man's former employers at Kohn, Nast & Graf contend that he was dismissed because his work did not meet their standards. The Philadelphia office of the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission has joined the plaintiff, marking the first time it has intervened in a discrimination case concerning AIDS or HIV. The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1992 is the foundation of this suit, and has already benefited a number of people discriminated against because of AIDS. Activists hope that the trial will attract the public's attention and educate people about AIDS issues in the workplace. "HIV-Positive Candidate Thinks Positive" Los Angeles Times (10/02/94) P. A10; Finucane, Martin Bob Massie, Democratic candidate for lieutenant governor of Massachusetts, is possibly the first HIV-positive candidate for statewide office. He says that he wants to help small businesses and work on health care reform and that he has not made his HIV status a focus of his campaign. Massie, a hemophiliac who was diagnosed with HIV in 1984 after receiving a blood transfusion, has not developed any HIV or AIDS-related illnesses. Kathleen DeBold, deputy director of the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund in Washington, said that Massie's candidacy "sends a message that the lives of people with HIV are full and active." "Canada Red Cross Wants Overhaul of Blood System" Reuters (10/01/94) The Canadian Red Cross announced Saturday the Canadian provinces and government need to overhaul the blood supply system and ensure that it can afford to provide safe blood; otherwise, the agency may withdraw from the blood-donation business. "If we don't have that change, then we'll have to...turn over our responsibilities to someone else," said Red Cross secretary-general Doug Lindores. Last month, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration reported that some of Canada's blood banks had violated U.S. FDA blood-production regulations. An inquiry is also examining how several Canadian hemophiliacs were infected with HIV from the blood supply during the early 1980s. "$15 Million Study Set to Improve HIV/AIDS Care" PR Newswire (09/30/94) The Public Health Service's Agency for Health Care Policy and Research announced Friday that the RAND Corporation will undertake a $15 million study of AIDS and HIV health care, treatment costs, and patients' sources of financing. The study will provide accurate, up-to-date information on the costs of and access to health care. More than 3,500 randomly selected participants from 16 states will be studied. This project builds on an earlier study, the AIDS Costs and Service Utilization Survey by AHCPR in 1991 and 1992. "Man with AIDS Fighting Clinic's 'No Pets' Policy" Washington Blade (09/23/94) Vol. 25, No. 39, P. 1; Fox, Sue Controversy has erupted at Schwartz Housing, a division of the Whitman-Walker Clinic, because of its "no pets" policy. Last August, officials told Jeffrey Pendleton, a Schwartz resident, that he could not keep his cats because they might carry diseases that are dangerous to the weakened immune systems of people living with HIV and AIDS. Officials also said that, because of the cats, the apartment would have to be fumigated before a new resident could move in--something that Pendleton said should be done regardless of whether there is an animal present or not. Pendleton credited the cats with giving him the will to live, and said that "the clinic is not here to play God." Whitman-Walker officials plan to re-evaluate their position on the "no pets" policy. "Health Care Hell" Advocate (09/20/94) No. 664, P. 20; Gallagher, John AIDS activists question whether Congressional health care reform will help people with long-term illnesses, such as AIDS and cancer. The Senate health care bill, while attempting 95 percent insurance coverage for Americans, would potentially cause more problems for people with HIV and AIDS. Some of the difficulties include a 25 percent tax on people with expensive policies; potentially suspended subsidies for Medicaid recipients, who rely on those benefits to purchase their own insurance; and the required purchase of health insurance by those who are not covered and may not be able to afford it. The delay in passing health care reform might benefit those with chronic illnesses because further changes to the bill might result in better care for people with HIV and AIDS. "Still on the Fast Track" Barron's (09/19/94) Vol. 74, No. 38, P. 14; Wyatt, Edward A. While David Kessler, commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, stated at last week's advisory hearings that the FDA would definitely continue its accelerated access policy for some experimental drugs used to treat life-threatening diseases, he did indicate that some "fine-tuning" might take place. Many AIDS activists are frustrated with the current program because drugs are entering the market without sufficient testing to find out whether and how they are effective. Critics also contend that the FDA should enforce adequate follow-up studies by the companies to prove a drug's long-term benefits. Kessler emphasized that the benefits of approving an experimental drug outweigh the risk of temporarily allowing an ineffective treatment to be on the market. Besides having to define their follow-up studies before accelerated access is granted, companies might have to submit their plans to the advisory committee in order to clarify all expectations. The FDA will use the recommendations to help develop new, clearer accelerated access guidelines for companies. "Hot Zones, Cold Chills: The Coming Plague" Newsweek (09/19/94) Vol. 124, No. 12, P. 64; Jones Jr., Malcolm The Coming Plague, by Laurie Garrett, addresses the significant epidemics that the world has faced. The 100-page chapter on AIDS outlines the science, sociology, and bad politics very clearly and accurately, and gives a global perspective that is not often apparent in such works. Garrett effectively highlights problems such as bureaucracy and the population explosion, and presents a world health crisis in which the world is being plagued by past and present diseases. "AIDS Experts Look East" Nation's Health (09/94) Vol. 24, No. 8, P. 1 The first international AIDS conference to be held in Japan caused attention to focus on the growing number of HIV infections in Asia and the immediate need for Asian countries to address AIDS prevention. Asian HIV infections are predicted to quadruple by the year 2000, affecting over 10 million people, said World Health Organization officials at the 10th International Conference on AIDS in Yokohama, Japan. AIDS cases in Asia represent 6 percent of the world total, up from 1 percent last year. In future years, Asia is expected to surpass Africa's number of cumulative AIDS cases. The conference also highlighted women and HIV, the HIV vaccine challenge, the relationship between sexually transmitted diseases and AIDS, and international HIV prevention methods. "AIDSLine: Hope for Cryptosporidiosis Sufferers?" Advocate (09/20/94) No.664, P. 25; Cohan, Gary R. Chronic gastric cryptosporidiosis, an AIDS-related complication, is characterized by prolonged watery diarrhea. It is caused by a parasite, whose eggs can be transmitted from person to person both sexually and casually. Each year, approximately 10 to 20 percent of AIDS patients contract intestinal cryptosporidiosis, and its fatality rate may be as high as 60 percent. To date, there is no cure, but there are several partially effective treatments available--including fluid and nutrient replacement, a lactose-free diet high in soluble fiber, and the drugs paromomycin and azithromycin.