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.

Points of Interest on NIH Research Allocations per 2005 budget, updated 2/17/05

AIDS deaths from CDC estimated at 16,371 in 2002

Cardiovascular Disease kills 950,000 every year, yet receives over 1/2 Billion less than AIDS

The NIH is spending $3,084 on each citizen estimated as having HIV/AIDS

Diabetes kills more Americans than AIDS and breast cancer combined, yet the NIH spends only $80 on each diabetic

Alzheimer's Disease kills 3.3 times more than AIDS, yet the NIH spends only $155 on each patient with Alzheimer's Disease

Prostate cancer kills 2 times more than AIDS, yet the NIH spends only $150 on each patient with prostate disease

Hepatitis C (HCV) kills 12,000, yet the NIH spends only $25 on each hepatitis C patient

Hepatitis B (HBV) kills 5,000, yet the NIH spends only $32 on each HBV patient

The flu (influenza) on average, now kills almost 2+ times more than AIDS

Parkinson's Disease death rate similar to AIDS yet the NIH spends $162 on each patient

COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Dis.) = 119,999 deaths in 2000 yet the NIH spends only $5 on each patient

West Nile Virus cases in 2004: 2470 cases and 88 deaths. West Nile Virus research allocation is $17,408 per patient.

Total USA HIV/AIDS budget for 2005 totals just under 20 Billion. 11 Billion for care, cash & housing assistance for patients. Total AIDS Funding since day one: 170 Billion dollars through 2005 (From Henry J Kaiser Foundation)

The infection rate for AIDS throughout the entire world is 1 percent or less except in two countries, Sub-Saharan Africa and the Caribbean

Monkeypox cases confirmed in the USA: 37, deaths =0. SARS: As of 10/6/04 the CDC states "there is no known SARS transmission anywhere in the world." Research monies not disclosed by NIH. Press coverage: disproportionate.

Statistical supporting links may be viewed here

Updated on Funding for your Disease of Interest is here.

Please take a moment to view our eminent Board of Directors

FAIR is an acronym for Fair Allocations In Research. FAIR is fair.

Volume 3: Issue 2

FAIR NEWSLETTER: February 2005

NIH slated for tiny 0.7% raise in 2006, but
Funding for AIDS Institute Remains Strong

President Bush sent to Congress on February 7th a $28.8 billion budget request for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in fiscal year (FY) 2006, a virtually flat 0.7 per cent increase. If enacted, it would be the first time since 1964 that NIH received an annual increase of less than 1 percent. Research advocates are disappointed over meager increases and cuts in the White House proposal; however the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), which funds AIDS research, is once again the agency's biggest gainer at $4.5 billion for all of its programs. When allocations for individual diseases are announced, FAIR will report the poor funding totals to you. See the full story by Ted Agres at "The Scientist" here.

FAIR Communicates with NIH Director
regarding Conflict of Interest Issues

Following up on FAIR's previous communications with Congress regarding conflict of interest issues at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), FAIR's Founder, Richard Darling, DDS, and Board Member Leonard J. Morse, MD, wrote to NIH Director, Elias A. Zirhouni, and called for a permanent ban on paid consulting activities by NIH researchers to insure National Institutes of Health funding is not suspect of such lateral payments between research scientists and private funding corporations. Read it here.

Department of Health and Human Services and
the Office of Government Ethics issue Restrictions
on NIH Outside Income

The new rules are stricter than those proposed last year by NIH Director Elias A. Zerhouni -- a reflection both of Congress's dissatisfaction with the changes the agency initially proposed and of Zerhouni's own blossoming recognition last year that the problem was bigger than he had thought. Read the full story here.

New York City Commissioner of Public
Health Panics over 1 New AIDS Case

The commissioner of Health in New York City, Dr. Thomas R. Frieden, has been criticized recently for issuing a citywide alarm after finding what may be a new strain in just one patient whose own immune system may have made the strain seem more virulent. In addition, Dr. Frieden took such action even though he stated, "I can't tell you how many people are on treatment for HIV." Read the full story carried nationwide as a major event by national news organizations here.

FAIR Members' Soapbox Alerts regarding
Hepatitis B & C, diabetes and others continue

FAIR Foundation members are now utilizing a very inexpensive and unique internet service to not only contact our country's President and Vice President for fair allocations in research, but at the same time they are collectively alerting thousands of citizens on the need for change. See a recent "Soapbox Alert" to citizens with hepatitis B and hepatitis C here and then send one today!

NIH West Nile Virus (WNV) Research
Allocation per patient Skyrockets

From 2003-2004 West Nile Virus deaths plummeted from 264 to 88, which has resulted in the NIH spending $17,408 per patient and a stunning $488,636 per WNV death. Compare that to other diseases that are truly affecting our country here and in the left-hand column of this newsletter.

FAIR Announces "Tee Off 4 Life" Golf Classic

FAIR Foundation member Frank Fefferman recently received the "Gift of Life": a new liver. To show his great gratitude, Frank has organized a wonderful, affordable golf classic to be played in Palm Desert and Cathedral City, California, and he has directed that all profits from this charitable event shall go to The FAIR Foundation and the Loma Linda University Transplant Institute to benefit patients. Access the tournament brochure and information on how to participate, even if you don't play golf or cannot attend, click here.

Focus Disease of the Month: Hepatitis C (HCV)

Hepatitis C is deadly: More AIDS patients are dying from liver failure with HCV as a causative factor than they are of the opportunistic infections that used to kill them. Estimated HCV deaths are now only a few thousand below that for HIV/AIDS in the USA
Hepatitis C is serious: HCV is the number one cause of liver transplant and there is no vaccine to prevent it. It is spread by blood to blood contact (sharing needles, tattooing, body piercing), not by hugging, kissing or sexual relations, unless there is blood exchange. Symptoms of advanced liver disease from HCV include throwing up blood, severe confusion, ascites, poor clotting, yellow coloring (jaundice), cramps, low cholesterol, kidney failure and diabetes, itching (pruritis), muscle wasting (cachexia), osteoporosis, pain, loss of sex drive, sodium and potassium imbalances, skin pathology, light stools, dark urine, loss of appetite, severe fatigue, insomnia, abnormal variations in blood pressure, swollen legs, low bile output
Hepatitis C is growing: The CDC estimates 1.8 per cent of the population is infected with HCV. February 15th population = 295,477,119 X 1.8 per cent = 5,318,588 Americans estimated as having HCV. Compare to 950,000 estimated to be living with HIV/AIDS
Hispanics: Latinos have more than a 40 percent greater chance of being infected with hepatitis C than the general population (Latino Organization for Liver Awareness)
Afro-Americans: Afro-Americans are the most severely affected race due to their predominately having the strain (genotype 1) that is most resistant to treatment.
Fairness? The NIH is spending only $25 on each patient with HCV in research versus $3,084 on each AIDS patient. This has resulted in 5 drugs for HCV and 79 new HIV AIDS drugs with 82 already approved.
Hepatitis Magazine publishes FAIR article calling for more HCV and HBV funding. Read the submitted article here.
Hepatitis C and all other diseases except HIV/AIDS would receive significantly larger research allocations under The FAIR Foundation's recommended policies

You have helped us grow rapidly, but we need more members to change Congress and the NIH. Please encourage new membership by posting this in chat rooms, Blogs, internet support groups, and by forwarding it to your associates, friends and relatives with your recommendation that they join free HERE. With strength in numbers, we WILL achieve fair and equitable NIH distributions for hepatitis C as well as ALL other diseases.

The FAIR Foundation
78629 Bougainvillea Drive, Palm Desert, CA 92211
E-mail: FAIR@dc.rr.com

FAIR Mission Statement: The FAIR Foundation is dedicated to fair and equitable distribution of research funds by the government for all diseases, including the 16 that kill a million more Americans than AIDS. A disease’s mortality rate shall be given emphasis in determining allocations and other secondary factors shall be utilized to insure diseases that cause great suffering but have low mortality rates will also receive significantly increased funding.