Most U.S. Residents Want Government To Increase Access to AIDS Drugs for People in Developing Countries, Poll Shows

Approximately 75% of U.S. residents say they agree that the U.S. government should do more to help developing countries access antiretroviral drugs, including generic drugs, according to a Wall Street Journal Online/Harris Interactive poll, the Wall Street Journal reports (Wall Street Journal, 8/2). The online poll of 2,169 U.S. adults was conducted between July 20 and 22 (WSJ Online/Harris Interactive release, 8/3). According to the poll, 85% of U.S. residents surveyed said that FDA should do more to bring HIV/AIDS treatments to the market quickly. More than half of the participants -- 58% -- said they believe that the HIV/AIDS epidemic has "gotten worse" in the past five years, according to the Journal. In addition, 79% of participants "strongly" or "somewhat" agreed with the statement, "The best way to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS is with preventative programs such as sex education, condom distribution and the distribution of clean needles to intravenous drug users." According to the Journal, the five-year, $15 billion President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief allocates 55% of funds for treatment, 20% for prevention, 15% for end-of-life care and 10% for AIDS orphans. However, survey participants said that the plan should allocate 34% of funds for prevention, 24% for treatment, 14% for end-of-life care and 27% for orphans. Harris Interactive Senior Vice President Katherine Binns said that the poll "suggest[s] that compared to the current administration, the U.S. public on the whole holds more socially liberal views about how this global health issue should be addressed" (Wall Street Journal, 8/2).