                     AIDS Daily Summary 
                      February 2, 1996

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 1995, Information, Inc., Bethesda, MD


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"A New AIDS Drug Yielding Optimism as Well As Caution"
"Bills Would Repeal Provision to Expel Troops with H.I.V."
"The GOP's HIV Disgrace"
"Magic Returns"
"AIDS Drug Progress Hailed, Prices Lamented"
"AIDS Fears Drop in U.S., Poll Shows"
"Romania Faces Syphilis Epidemic"
"Inside the Beltway: AIDS and Reality"
"How to Ensure the Continued Resurgence of Tuberculosis"
"Getting Your Insurer to Cover New HIV Treatments: A Crash 
Course"
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"A New AIDS Drug Yielding Optimism as Well As Caution"
New York Times (02/02/96) P. A1;  Altman, Lawrence K.
     The protease inhibitor ritonavir has been found to reduce both 
the death rate and the number of serious complications in 
advanced AIDS patients by almost half.  In a large international 
study of more than 1,100 patients, 13 percent of those who 
received the drug died or had their disease progress, compared to
27 percent who did not receive the drug.  The death rate was 4.8 
percent among the 543 patients who were taking the drug, compared
to 8.4 percent of the 547 who received a placebo, according to 
Dr. John Leonard, an Abbott Laboratories official.  All patients 
continued with the therapy they were taking before.  Doctors 
caution, that while the results are promising, they do not know 
how long the drug will be beneficial.  Related Story: USA Today 
(02/02/96) P.1A
      
"Bills Would Repeal Provision to Expel Troops with H.I.V."
New York Times (02/02/96) P. A11;  Schmitt, Eric
     An effort is underway in both houses of Congress to reverse a 
provision in the Defense authorization bill that would discharge 
HIV-infected military personnel.  The bipartisan movement is 
being supported by such lawmakers as Sen. William S. Cohen 
(R-Maine), Rep. Peter G. Torkildsen (R-Mass.), and Sen. Sam Nunn 
(D-Ga.).  Bills to eliminate the provision that would discharge 
in six months more than 1,000 HIV-positive troops will likely be 
introduced to both the House and Senate in the next few days.  
Such efforts have received widespread support in the Senate, but 
may face difficulties in the House.  The White House, meanwhile, 
has requested recommendations on ways to repeal the measure and 
protect medical and disability payments to HIV-infected service 
members and their families.  Opponents of the discharge 
provision, which is sponsored by Rep. Robert K. Dornan 
(R-Calif.), claim that it is discriminatory, and point out that 
no effort is being made to discharge 4,000 other personnel whose 
duties are limited because of chronic but not debilitating 
diseases.
      
"The GOP's HIV Disgrace"
Washington Post (02/02/96) P. A19;  Krauthammer, Charles
     In the Washington Post, columnist Charles Krauthammer takes issue
with the successes and failures of the Republican revolution in 
Congress.  Krauthammer notes that while the Republicans have not 
been able to reform welfare or make tax cuts, they have succeeded
in forcing the discharge of HIV-positive military members.  He 
calls this "particular disgrace" one of the "petty, petulant 
legislative crumbs that the Republicans have settled for and that
Clinton was prepared to let them have."  Moreover, Krauthammer 
compares the policy to another issue in the Defense authorization
bill, the building of a system to protect the country from 
ballistic missile attack.  He says that on this, "the single most
important defense issue facing the country," the Republicans 
caved after Clinton opposed the provision.  Krauthammer calls the
HIV provision "mean-spirited and useless," and points out that 
people with other chronic conditions are allowed to serve.
      
"Magic Returns"
Baltimore Sun (02/01/96) P. 12A
     The editors of the Baltimore Sun observe that Earvin "Magic" 
Johnson's return to the National Basketball Association 
exemplifies how American's have come to understand AIDS.  Johnson
wanted to return to the league three years ago, but HIV fears 
among other players prevented it.  Now, however, he is welcomed 
back into the sport, thus showing that Americans have learned 
enough about the disease not to fear getting it from casual 
contact.  But, the authors point out, this knowledge has come at 
the high cost of a great number of people becoming infected with 
HIV and dying from AIDS.
      
"AIDS Drug Progress Hailed, Prices Lamented"
Reuters (02/01/96);  Kenen, Joanne
     AIDS patients and doctors say they are encouraged by major 
advances in treatment for the disease announced this week, but 
are wary that high prices will make them inaccessible to many.  
At the Third Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic 
Infections in Washington, D.C., scientists heard promising 
results of studies that show some new drugs seem to control HIV 
when combined with antiviral treatments already available.  
Although the results are preliminary, scientists are encouraged, 
and the Food and Drug Administration is expected to approve the 
drugs quickly.  A combination of several antivirals, however, 
could cost thousands of dollars a year.  Several activist groups 
at the meeting did not blame the drug companies for the high 
prices, but joined forces with them to lobby the government for 
more support.
      
"AIDS Fears Drop in U.S., Poll Shows"
Reuters (02/01/96)
     Americans' fear of contracting HIV has dropped dramatically in 
the past 10 years, according to an ABC poll released Thursday.  
The telephone survey of 509 adults showed that only 17 percent 
said they were afraid of becoming HIV-infected.  This is the 
smallest proportion in a decade of polling.  The highest level of
concern was reported five years ago, at 29 percent.  The poll was
conducted after Magic Johnson, who had retired after learning he 
was HIV-positive, returned to the NBA this week. Seventy-four 
percent of those polled said they approved of Johnson's return.
      
"Romania Faces Syphilis Epidemic"
Reuters (02/01/96)
     Romania, a country that already has the worst juvenile AIDS 
problem in Europe, is facing a growing syphilis epidemic among 
young people.  Bucharest researcher Dr. Vasile Gradina estimated 
the number of new syphilis cases to be 6,000 in 1995, with 1,600 
in Bucharest alone.  He explained that the problem was rooted in 
juvenile promiscuity, prostitution, and what he termed an 
essential lack of discipline.  Condoms are available in Romania, 
but are not widely used.  The country's rate of AIDS among 
juveniles is Europe's highest, with up to 90 percent of the cases
in children under 12.
      
"Inside the Beltway: AIDS and Reality"
Washington Times (01/31/96) P. A9;  McCaslin, John
     The Gertrude Stein Club, a politically active homosexual group in
Washington, D.C., has endorsed President Clinton for re-election,
despite the fact that he is expected to sign a Defense 
authorization bill, which includes a provision to force the 
discharge of HIV-positive military members.  A member of the 
AIDS-awareness group ACT UP is opposed to Clinton's re-election, 
and says that candidates endorsed by the Stein Club have not been
successful in the past.
      
"How to Ensure the Continued Resurgence of Tuberculosis"
Lancet (175) Vol.347, No.8995,;  Reichman, Lee B.
     In this "Viewpoint" article Dr. Lee Reichman, of the New Jersey 
Medical Center and the National Tuberculosis Center, questions 
the job that the World Health Organization (WHO) is doing to 
battle tuberculosis, which is the only disease the group has 
singled out as a "global health emergency."  He says the World 
Health Assembly, the group that sets the WHO's priorities, should
give more funding to tuberculosis.  He also says more effort 
should be given to new drug development. While some 
pharmaceutical companies are working on tuberculosis drugs, 
according to Reichman, many do not consider the development of 
such drugs profitable.  Tuberculosis cases in the United States  
declined in 1993 and 1994, attributable, Reichman says, to the 
"unprecedented appropriation of attention and cash, allowing for
the re-establishment of the public-health infrastructure."  He 
says the rise of the disease in the 1980s "is even more easily 
demonstrated--erosion of state level tuberculosis control 
programs under the failed block grant funding experiments of the 
1970s."
      
"Getting Your Insurer to Cover New HIV Treatments: A Crash 
Course"
AIDS Treatment News (01/05/96) No.238, P. 1;  Keller, Irwin E.
     People with HIV are likely to have difficulty getting health 
insurance coverage for cutting edge treatments.  Insurance 
policies often exempt an insurer from paying for treatment that 
is "experimental" or "Investigational."  It is important for the 
patient to find out exactly why the insurer denied a claim.  Most
policies call for the insurer to cover all "medically necessary" 
procedures, and, when disputed, courts usually interpret 
insurance contracts to include the broadest coverage.  The 
patient should show that a procedure is necessary, by offering 
evidence that all other available treatments were not effective. 
If an insurer denies a claim on the grounds that the procedure is
experimental, the patient should check the definition of 
"experimental" in the contract.  Many courts have decided that 
without a definition in the policy, the term "experimental" is 
vague.  In that cased, a court may tell the insurer that payment 
cannot be denied on that basis.  The first step in appealing an 
insurance claim is within the company.  If that fails, a patient 
can sue the company, although if the insurer is unwilling to 
settle out of court, a lawsuit could take years to complete.
      
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