A.I.D.S. cost ‘enormous’

Press, 12 August 1985, Page 5

A.I.D.S. cost ‘enormous’

PA Auckland The economic impact of A.I.D.S. is enormous, according to Dr David Cooper, an Australian specialist in the disease. Dr Cooper, who arrived in Auckland yesterday at the invitation of the Blood Foundation of New Zealand, said: “A.I.D.S. is a disease affecting our young people who then cannot contribute the tax dollars any more to support our ageing population.”

He will attend the fortyfirst annual meeting of the Institute of Medical Laboratory Technology in Palmerston North this week.

Uniform screening of blood donors in Australia began on May 1, said Dr Cooper. "It took only one month to evaluate the packs. Australia was the first country to introduce routine screening. “I believe it will be «ptro-

duced here in two to three months.”

Dr Cooper emphasises there is no evidence that a person can catch A.I.D.S. through normal social contact.

"Sharing a meal, using the same toilet, being in the same room with someone with A.I.D.S. is not a worry.” He says it is important that two measures be taken.

“High-risk groups must be educated in the modes of transmission of the disease. Bi-sexual men who are married are a big concern. Laws outlawing homosexuality are a disaster for getting at this high risk group.

“We need to get to young, sexually active people and warn them of the dangers.” Second, he said, the population needed to be educated so they did not fear being in the same room as people with A.I.D.S. or homosexuals or haemophiliacs.