AIDS at the beginning of the second decade
McKenzie, N.F.
Health Pac Bulletin 20(3): 32-39
1990
ISSN/ISBN: 0017-9051 PMID: 10183428 Document Number: 374933
Though at times tumultuous, the 6th International Conference on AIDS, hosted by in San Francisco, avoided the polarization of previous conferences and achieved a political success. Conference participants vehemently objected to the Immigration and Naturalization Service's policy of barring homosexuals and HIV carriers from entering the country, a practice that remained unchanged for the conference. Over 80 organizations boycotted the conference. Displeasure with US government policies was also evident when AIDS activists drowned out the speech by Secretary of Health and Human Services Louis Sullivan. While paper presentations by notable researchers appeared to be mostly a formality, since most of the information had already been published, useful exchanges did occur when scientists were, for a day, allowed to display abstracts on their latest research. But perhaps the most popular printed item on the conference was ACT UP's Research Agenda, a handout prepared by the AIDS activist group listing a series of drugs that should be tested and treatments that should be tried. Participants heard the disturbing news of the spread of the epidemic, of how 3.5 million Africans are infected, and of how Brazilian teenagers are at great risk of infection. Furthermore, participants discussed the high cost of AIDS care in the US (estimated at $85,000/patient) and the reluctance of insurance companies to cover AIDS-stricken patients. Aside from the exchange of information, the conference's real success came in the political arena, establishing itself as policymaker and champion of the affected.