AIDS vs. COVID 19: A Tale of Two Pandemics
Several of my younger colleagues have asked me to talk about how the current COVID pandemic compares with the AIDS pandemic.
One similarity that comes to mind is the painful, slow, inept Federal leadership with both.
Interesting that Dr. Tony Fauci was around for both and provided some real leadership during the worst days of the AIDS crisis—and led the Federal research efforts, despite alack of interest from President Reagan and his administration. (See my Dr. Fauci story).
One big difference is the disruption with COVID-19. AIDS changed our lives but we didn’t need to work from home - and we could still hug and kiss.
Other Similarities and Differences
Similarities - both were/had
global, sudden, and explosive confusion
the information changed on a daily basis
the concepts of contagion and how infections are transmitted are confusing
mode of transmission unclear in the beginning
sluggish US government response
variable public responses—not everyone understood the seriousness of the problem
There was no treatment in the beginning; there are no vaccines for either
Both viruses “mutate”
It was like a war zone with sick and dying people everywhere.
Communities mobilized to volunteer to take care of patients, feed patients, and raise money
The story was in the news constantly
There was a lot of misinformation
Some people thought the epidemic was a conspiracy
Others have said it was divine punishment for homosexuality and same sex marriage
underground treatments—unapproved drugs emerged
treatment/cure scams/”it’s a political conspiracy”
Keith Haring was an American artist who died of AIDS; a part of the lost generation (1958-1990). This 1989 poster for the advocacy group, ACT UP (AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power) is still relevant today.
Differences
COVID is a respiratory virus—and a respiratory virus changes everything. It is more contagious
Internet, social media, 24-hour news cycle allow for faster communication
FDA sluggish—although this FDA may be a bit more aggressive
We knew about the COVID virus fairly soon after the disease appeared; with HIV, it took two years to discover that HIV was the cause
HIV testing came four years into the pandemic; COVID testing is available, but sluggish