Imagine…
- a world with no Internet, iPods or cell phones.
- a generation filled with ambition and optimism.
- a deadly virus with no known cure that will decimate a generation in its prime.
The year is 1981. Fear abounds, but there is hope that a cure will soon be found.
No one imagined that 25 years later, the epidemic would rage on in the United States and become a pandemic with more than one half million deaths in this country and over 30 million worldwide.
In the past 25 years, our country has experienced unparalleled growth and prosperity. Technological and scientific advances have come faster than in any period in American history. These changes have transformed our lives in large and small ways.
At the same time, we have tolerated the continuance of an epidemic that infects 40,000 Americans every year. Well over one million people are currently infected, and the epidemic contributes to the crippling cost of health care for all citizens. Every day people across our country die from complications from this deadly virus. We know what causes it; we know how to prevent it, but we have not stopped it.
We Americans like to win. We want a problem defined, a solution developed, the cost articulated, and then we take care of it and move on. We do not tolerate ineffectiveness and inefficiency. We make things happen with determination, hard work and focus.
AIDS is the disease of the baby boomer generation. It is uniquely ours. It happened in our youth and has blossomed on our watch. Our brothers, college roommates and friends died. We vowed to make a difference. We demonstrated in the streets to ensure that drugs were made available to those infected. We handed out condoms and clean needles. We held the hands of the dying.
We seemed to stem the tide for awhile. Deaths were less frequent. Visible signs of the disease faded. Our lives got more complicated. We pursued career goals, managed a Little League team and cared for our aging parents. But now we must get back to our unfinished task and end the epidemic.
Imagine. . .
- every child in America has access to good health education programs.
- needle exchange is an integral part of all state and local public health programming.
- every citizen has access to the life-saving drugs and medical care necessary to keep HIV infection in check.
- drug treatments that suppress HIV infection have minimal side effects and easy treatment regimens so that people living with HIV can lead productive, happy lives.
- gels and creams that block the transmission of HIV during sexual intercourse are commercially available and widely used.
- “survivors” are treated with dignity and sympathy; there is no stigma and shame.
Imagine…
… the end of the AIDS epidemic in America in the next 10 years.
This is all possible. We have the scientific and technological knowledge to achieve our objectives. Now we need the will to do it. How do we garner support and commitment?
We must set specific measurable goals, devise strategies and a financial plan to achieve those goals, implement the plan, and report on our progress until the epidemic is controlled. We may not eliminate HIV infection entirely, but we can ease the suffering and reduce the drain on our healthcare system.
Let’s make a commitment today to end this epidemic in our country. We didn’t ask for this challenge, but it came on our watch. It is up to us to reengage in the battle, to apply the same high standards to ending it as we do to everything else in our busy, daily lives. It is up to us; we simply cannot tolerate the suggestion that we pass this enormous burden to the next generation.We are much better than that.
It is time to take action. What will you do today?
