Chicago Tribune (CT) - TUESDAY June 28, 1988 Edition: FINAL Section: NEWS Page: 4 Word Count: 624
Janet Cawley, Chicago Tribune

Reagan appointed Dr. Ian MacDonald, his special assistant for drug policy, to review the nearly 200-page report and "to present to me within 30 days a course of action that takes us forward," according to a White House statement.

The commission chairman, retired Navy Adm. James Watkins, briefed the President Monday afternoon and later told reporters outside the White House that his reception had been "very exciting" and "you can tell (the President) is a compassionate humanitarian."

In terms of government action related to the report, Watkins said, "I wouldn't rule out anything." He added that Reagan should first be given an opportunity to read the report.

Watkins said he was heartened by Reagan's statement that he had "also directed Dr. MacDonald to include among his priorities consideration of specific measures to strengthen implementation of the policy guidance from 'AIDS in the Workplace.' "

Those guidelines, which spell out the rights of AIDS victims, were recently put out by the Office of Personnel Management, the agency responsible for the federal government's more than 2.3 million civilian employees.

Watkins, retired chief of naval operations, said he felt Reagan's statement "sends the first signal that we're on the way" toward protecting AIDS victims against discrimination.

The 13 members of the AIDS panel, created by the President a year ago, heard nearly 600 witnesses before writing their final report. Their key recommendations include:

- "HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) infection is a disability and should be treated as such under federal and state law in the public and private sectors. Fear has led to discrimination against persons known to be infected. This reaction is inappropriate. Infected persons should be encouraged to continue normal activities. . . ."

- "Stronger protection is needed in federal and state law to protect the privacy of those with HIV, with significant penalties for violation of confidentiality standards, yet with a list of necessary exceptions clearly defined in the statutes."

The panel said such exceptions should include disclosure to attending doctors, nurses and care-giving staff, to health care workers accidentally exposed to a patient's blood or body fluids, to blood and organ banks, to the victim of a sexual assault and to a spouse or sexual partner when the patient involved will not provide the information voluntarily.

- "Safety of the blood supply needs to be continually assured by the federal government."

- "In health care facilities, all reasonable strategies to avoid a transfusion of someone else's blood should be implemented by substituting, whenever possible, transfusion with one's own blood."

The committee delivered its report to the White House last Friday in compliance with the deadline it originally was given. However, Reagan did not receive a copy of the report until Monday.

Reagan's meeting with Watkins was closed to reporters, but White House spokesman Marlin Fitzwater said the President "went on at some length with Adm. Watkins about his personal concerns with this problem."

Reagan, according to Fitzwater, told Watkins, "We want to start moving on this and give people a ray of hope."

Some representatives of groups that have supported the AIDS commission's recommendations felt the White House response was too low-key.

"I think it's a reflection of the fact that this administration continues to want to ignore some of the fundamental public health issues associated with AIDS," said Jeffrey Levi, executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force. "Their treatment of their own commission almost as illegitimate is a very sad commentary of continuing disregard. I see little hope that this administration will change its course in its final days."

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