Mark S. Senak

Some people have argued that AIDS has continued to spread in the United States due to society’s failure to use traditional public health measures. In the following two-part viewpoint, Mark S. Senak contends that such “AIDS exceptionalism” in public health policy is justified because AIDS is a unique disease. For example, he argues, if the names of individuals who test positive for the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) were reported to public health departments, many people would refuse to be tested for HIV because of the stigma and discrimination they might face. Changing AIDS policies to include such procedures as routine testing and names reporting should be attempted only if confidentiality can be assured and if all people who test positive for HIV have ready access...