The FAIR Foundation is dedicated to fair and equitable distributions of Nation Institutes of Health (NIH) research funds for all diseases, including the sixteen that kill more Americans than AIDS.

Request to "American Dialogue" and its Hosts, Ms. Kathleen Turner and Ms. Charline Spektor

RE: http://www.americandialogue.org/programs/auerbachshow.html

Dear Ms. Turner and Ms. Spektor,

You recently had a show “The Global AIDS Crisis” with Dr. Judith Auerbach, Vice President, Public Policy, for the American Foundation for AIDS Research (amfAR). On behalf of our national organization, The FAIR Foundation, I am requesting the opportunity to present an opposing opinion. Specifically, that the disproportionate media attention that is given to global AIDS results in disproportionate funding for HIV/AIDS research in comparison to the funding for research on all other diseases, including the sixteen diseases that kill over a million more Americans than AIDS each year.

AIDS activists such as Dr. Judith Auerbach typically state that AIDS is a crisis within the USA and globally. They do this to frighten everyone and protect their present disproportionately exorbitant funding. Dr. Auerbach states that while funding through the Welfare Reform Act to promote abstinence only has doubled “while we’re facing a budget crisis in which all kinds of other [AIDS] programs are diminishing in their funding. The true fact is that AIDS funding has increased dramatically and, at the present rate of funding for all AIDS programs, the total monies spent on AIDS will approach 1/5th of a Trillion dollars in two years.

Dr. Auerbach states AIDS has tripled in women and increased significantly among the young people of America and African-Americans. The FAIR Foundation regularly asks the media to ask such AIDS activists to state the actual facts, not alarming references such as “tripled” or “AIDS infections up 2%.” The estimated number of deaths in women reported by the CDC is 4,226 and 62 in children under the age of 13. The actual number of deaths from AIDS in African-Americans was 8,566 (all are 2002 statistics). Almost 500,000 women die of cardiovascular disease every year and 3,000 children die of SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome). Yet, only $73 million is being spent on SIDS in disease research versus almost $3 Billion on AIDS (see stats below for CVD). That’s not fair.

The true facts regarding Global AIDS are that the infection rate of AIDS in every country, as reported by UNAIDS and the World Health Organization, is less than one percent except in Sub-Saharan Africa and the Caribbean (see one or two). What do the people in Sub-Saharan Africa and the Caribbean need? More research by Dr. Auerbach and our government? No, they need the same things that have dropped the AIDS death rate in California’s newly infected patients 97% and that have dropped the death rate in all of the USA for all AIDS patients over 80%, namely, prevention education, the drugs that have already been developed that are so successful (HAART or Highly Active Anti-retroviral Therapy), and harm reduction policies. The FAIR Foundation has been calling for these global policies for two years and we were heartened to hear Anthony Fauci, Director of the NIH’s NIAID state on cable network news that the answer to the AIDS global infections is prevention expenditures. (NIAID = National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and it oversees AIDS funding at the NIH)

Furthermore, note the following: a) in a stunning article from the Boston Globe, reporter John Donnelly reports worldwide AIDS infections are now thought to be overestimated by as much as 50%, and b) a recent Centers for Disease Control Study In Kenya, as reported by the Daily Telegraph’s Adrian Blomfield has shown that proper testing has resulted in the finding that millions of Africans previously thought to have AIDS are free of the disease.

Within the USA, diabetes kills more Americans than AIDS and breast cancer COMBINED, yet the National Institutes of Health is spending only $80 on each diabetic in research versus $3,084 on each AIDS patient. The increase in AIDS funding since 1999 – just the increase – is greater than the entire 2005 budget for every disease except cancer and cardiovascular disease (CVD). CVD alone kills almost a million Americans every year compared to 16,371 estimated for AIDS (2002), yet only $40 is spent on each CVD patient.

The present situation in the USA regarding disease research allocations is not fair or equitable. The thousands of FAIR Foundation members from 47 states and DC as well as our 27-member Board of Directors consisting of esteemed physicians and disease advocates are calling for change at the NIH to insure fairness for all diseases without bias for any one.

In regards to amfAR, the following should be noted: more AIDS patients are now dying of liver disease, including hepatitis C (HCV) as one cause, than they are of the opportunistic infections that used to kill them. To out knowledge, amfAR has not allocated any funds solely to hepatitis C research (HCV). Also, one cannot help but notice that in amfAR’s 2002 IRS Form 990, CEO Jerome Radwin, had total compensation of $349,534 ($349,534 is an increase of $49,000 in one year and equals $314,479 in compensation + $35,055 contribution to employee benefit plan) while the Assistant Secretary and VP of Public Information, Deborah Hernan, received a total of $196,427. amfAR reported the book value of their $12,455,570 in Mutual Funds, US Treasury Bills, CD’s and Equities had decreased by $1,847,800 to $10,607,770, a decrease of 14.8%. (see note below)

Why aren’t they funding Hepatitis C research to help the large number of AIDS patients who are also infected with HCV?

I would be honored to come on your show and present the opposing side of this debate of “global AIDS” and how it relates to unfair research funding for all other diseases within the USA.

Thank you for your consideration.

Richard Darling, DDS

Richard Darling, DDS: 2003 National Public Citizen of the Year
President and CEO: The FAIR Foundation, a national movement to reverse inequities in research funding distributions by
the National Institutes of Health
Founder: The Coachella Valley Hepatitis C, Liver Disease & Transplant Support Group
Board of Directors: United Organ Transplant Association
Ambassador: OneLegacy, a transplant donor network
Author: Coma Life, an autobiographical memoir of life "within" coma and survival over hepatitis C induced liver cancer,
three liver transplants, heart attack, diabetes

PS: While in my coma I experienced many dreams. As I wrote in “Coma Life,” one such dream involved Ms. Turner and I would be happy to explain that in more detail on the show as well as educate your audience on the organ donor crisis in this country and the needed solutions.

Editor Note: The financial figures regarding amfAR's Form 990 have been updated.