                     AIDS Daily Summary
                       May 7, 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 National AIDS Clearinghouse, or any
other organization. Reproduction of this text is encouraged;
however, copies may not be sold, and the CDC National AIDS
Clearinghouse should be cited as the source of this information.
Copyright 1996, Information, Inc., Bethesda, MD
     
     
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"Hormone Has Role in Simian AIDS"
"Merck's Marketing of an AIDS Drug Draws Fire" 
"Roche AIDS Treatment Is Shown to Prolong Life" 
"Too Much for AIDS?"
"Across the USA: Tennessee"
"New Facility to Cut Use of U.S. Blood"
"Obituary: Gina Salgado, 17, Warned Students About AIDS Peril"
"WHYY Pulls No Punches in AIDS Show"
"Addressing AIDS at Work"
"Take the Money and Shun"
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"Hormone Has Role in Simian AIDS"
New York Times (05/07/96) P. C3;  Kolata, Gina
     The sex hormone progesterone, which is especially prevalent in
the second half of the menstrual cycle, has been shown to make 
female monkeys much more vulnerable to SIV, the monkey version of 
HIV.  Preston A. Marx and others at the National Institute of 
Child Health and Human Development report that 14 of 18 monkeys 
given the hormone became infected with SIV, compared to just one 
of 10 monkeys that did not receive the hormone.  The results were 
reported Monday at a meeting of the American Clinical 
Investigation and the American Federation for Clinical Research. 
The findings are not necessarily applicable to humans, but 
experts say the results support earlier theories linking hormone 
levels and susceptibility.  Two contraceptives, the implant 
Norplant, and Depo Provera, which is injected, contain
progesterone, but experts say the study does not merit a woman 
changing her method of birth control.  Related Stories: 
Washington Post (05/07) P. A6; Baltimore Sun (05/07) P. 4A
     
"Merck's Marketing of an AIDS Drug Draws Fire"
Wall Street Journal (05/07/96) P. B1;  Tanouye, Elyse;  Waldholz, 
Michael
     Merck & Co.'s distribution of its new AIDS drug Crixivan
through Stadtlanders Pharmacy, a mail-order operation, has angered 
both activists and pharmacists.  Activists are calling for protests
against Merck and Stadtlanders for providing the drug in limited 
quantities and at a 37 percent higher cost.  A pharmacy group is 
lobbying federal regulators and Congress to prevent drug 
companies from restricting distribution of their products, 
keeping pharmacies from making profits on the drugs.  Merck did 
not expect the controversy, having worked with activists and 
offering Crixivan at a lower cost than the industry expected.  
The company said it restricted access to the drug because of 
limited supply and because once a patient starts taking Crixivan, 
it is dangerous for them to stop.  Crixivan, one of three
protease inhibitors to be approved, is considered better than its 
competitors, and is cheaper, so demand for the drug is especially 
high.
     
"Roche AIDS Treatment Is Shown to Prolong Life" 
Wall Street Journal (05/07/96) P. B5
     Roche Holding announced that study participants who took its
new protease inhibitor Invirase in combination with ddC lived 
longer and had fewer life-threatening health problems than patients
who took either of the two drugs alone.  The study of 978 patients 
further demonstrates the success of the new protease inhibitors 
when used with existing drugs.
     
"Too Much for AIDS?"
Journal of Commerce (05/07/96) P. 7A;  Greenberg, Daniel S.
     In the Journal of Commerce, Daniel S Greenberg, editor of
Science & Government Report, examines federal funding for AIDS and 
the public's support of the battle against the disease.  On a 
per-patient basis, Greenberg notes that AIDS research receives more
funding than heart disease or cancer, partly due to active lobbying
by groups affected by AIDS, including those in the performing arts,
fashion, and professional sports.  While AIDS has most heavily
impacted homosexuals and injection drug users in the United States,
the author points out that the heterosexual population is also
vulnerable to the disease, especially because heterosexual
transmission is common in Asia and Africa.  Greenberg concludes
that basic research is essential to fight multiple diseases and
that funding for AIDS research should be maintained.
     
"Across the USA: Tennessee"
USA Today (05/07/96) P. 8A
     Since 1991, the number of HIV-infected inmates in Tennessee 
prisons has increased from 28 to 120.  Wardens cited unprotected 
sex between inmates as an explanation for the spread.
     
"New Facility to Cut Use of U.S. Blood"
Toronto Globe and Mail (05/06/96) P. A5;  Picard, Andre
     The Canadian Red Cross is opening a new plasma collection 
facility in Thunder Bay, Ontario, with hopes that it will be able 
to reduce the amount of blood products imported from the United
States.  Donors will have their blood extracted, broken down into 
two major components, and red cells will be returned to the donor 
as plasma is collected.  With the center, Canada could be 
self-sufficient in plasma by the end of 1998.  The country hopes 
to become the first nation that has a wholly volunteer 
plasmapheresis program.
     
"Obituary: Gina Salgado, 17, Warned Students About AIDS Peril" 
Chicago Tribune (05/06/96) P. 1-10;  Salemy, Shirley
     Gina Salgado, who was infected with HIV as an infant through
a blood transfusion and who warned high school and college students
about AIDS, died Saturday at the age of 17.  Miss Salgado was
diagnosed with AIDS about 11 years ago and was forced to quit
high school as a sophomore.  She continued to educate her peers
about the disease, however, even after doctors referred her to
hospice care a year ago.  Miss Salgado tried to warn other
students that AIDS does not discriminate and that personal
responsibility is the only way to protect oneself.

"WHYY Pulls No Punches in AIDS Show"
Philadelphia Inquirer (05/07/96) P. F9;  Storm, Jonathan
     Mothers March, a documentary about activist mothers of AIDS
patients in the Philadelphia area, reflects the discrimination
that AIDS patients experience and emphasizes the fact that anyone
can contract HIV, according to television critic Jonathan Storm.
Storm notes that the documentary is a powerful presentation
of four women who used their illness as a learning experience and
a stage from which to launch themselves into new horizons.

"Addressing AIDS at Work"
Business Insurance (04/29/96) Vol. 30, No. 18, P. 14;  Roberts,
Sally
     As AIDS continues to take its toll on those between the ages
of 25 and 44, AIDS-related employment discrimination is on the
rise.  At least one worker is infected at one in 10 of the
companies with less than 500 employees and at two-thirds of the
companies with more than 2,500 employees.  One in seven people in
the workforce and one in 12 managers say they know little to
nothing about AIDS, according to a Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention study.  The survey found that many people wrongly
believe that HIV can be transmitted through casual contact,
bathrooms, and mosquitoes.  To combat these and potential legal
problems, Angie Hammock, of the CDC's Business and Labor Respond
to AIDS programs, suggests using an education and training
program for employers.  The program includes a written company
policy and training on HIV and AIDS issues, such as benefits for 
infected employees, medical information about HIV transmission, 
first aid and infection control practices, preventing 
discrimination, and maintaining confidentiality. Under OSHA 
regulations, employers with employees who could "reasonably 
anticipate" contact with blood or bodily fluids must have written
exposure control plans and provide personal protective equipment. 
Moreover, employers must also comply with the Americans with 
Disabilities Act, which requires employers to make "reasonable 
accommodations" for HIV-infected workers.
     
"Take the Money and Shun"
POZ (04/96) No. 13, P. 27
     The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention spent more than
a year trying to give a $1 million grant to Texas' education 
agency.  The grant, which would fund HIV prevention education in 
the state's public schools, was rejected for fear that the CDC 
would dictate how schools teach sex education.  The grant was 
suspended in 1994 and almost rejected again in 1995, but 
eventually, the CDC convinced education head Mike Moses to accept 
the money.  Although the terms of the agreement did require some 
changes in Texas' sex education program, CDC spokeswoman Michelle 
Bonds notes that the grant could be interpreted to permit the 
state's abstinence-based, locally controlled sex education 
curriculum.  In New York City, meanwhile, School Superintendent 
Rudy Crew disappointed HIV-education advocates when he supported
a tamer version of the city's current HIV curriculum, including
eliminating a demonstration of the proper way to use a condom.
