Test Your Own Self
This sounds like good news:

"The United States approved the first rapid saliva test for the HIV virus that causes AIDS, health officials said on Friday. The test, made by OraSure Technologies Inc., provides results within 20 minutes with 99 percent accuracy. Other approved rapid HIV tests require blood samples.

'This oral test provides another important option for people who might be afraid of a blood test,' Health and Human Services, Secretary Tommy Thompson said.'"

It seems to me that the benefit is less about physical fears of a blood test than it is the unfortuante stigma or social discomfort in going to a clinic to get tested. This technology should allow people, eventually, to test themselves at home quite easily, like a home pregnancy test (I haven't found any reference to how much it might cost in that format). The down side to it, which would seem to pale in comparison to the positives, is mentioned in the story as well in my nomination for understatement of the day:

"Officials would have to consider how patients might react to the results at home, without health-care workers on hand, said Jesse Goodman, director of the FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research. False positives could be troublesome, he said."

I was determined today, and for the weekend, to post about non-Bush-related things. I never intended this blog to become about only my anti-Bush sentiments, though they've been hard to ignore. Still, we are well-rounded, smart people aren't we? Well, at least well-rounded. So, I was excited to post about something as positive, and as seemingly unrelated to Bush, as this story about improved HIV testing.

But, alas, in reading around on this, I found this editorial in today's Washington Post, which reminds me how equally well-rounded are the Bush failures:

"...the administration is taking a tortuous approach to AIDS treatment. Rather than back the use of unpatented 'generic' medicines made by foreigners, it appears keen to find excuses to procure patented drugs from U.S. firms. Generic AIDS drugs cost perhaps a quarter as much as patented rivals, even after the latter have been discounted, according to the medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres. Using the expensive option, and therefore treating fewer patients, is perverse, given the scale of the pandemic. Of the 40 million people living with HIV, some 6 million are considered to be in urgent need of treatment, but only 400,000 are receiving it."

I appreciate the fact that our FDA has made us, relatively speaking, extremely safe, and is a model for the world in many respects. It's also an effective counter to anti-government buffoons who think there's no need for government regulations as the marketplace will sort it all out.

But...this insistence that foreign-made drugs are not safe is such an obvious, foolish nod to domestic drug companies, I don't know why they think anyone falls for it. I know we can't just stamp "approved" on every medicine every country allows, but there has to be a middle ground. Canada strikes me as a pretty safe place, but the FDA isn't so sure.

Canadians, why are your drugs so unsafe?