Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1983. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
The New York Times - June 23, 1983
Susan Chira, Special To The New York Times
"We must not permit AIDS sufferers and their families to be subjected to irrational and unscientific behavior born out of fear rather than fact," Governor Cuomo said.
AIDS, or acquired immune deficiency syndrome, ravages the body's natural defenses and has no known cure. Of the 1,500 cases reported nationwide, 700 have been found in New York.
Health officials say that the disease is not spread by casual contact and that those in the high-risk group are homosexual men, intravenous drug users, hemophiliacs requiring large amounts of blood products and Haitians.
Mr. Cuomo said the state would expand its laboratory facilities, step up research efforts, find hospitals to care for state inmates or mental patients with AIDS, increase educational programs about the illness and monitor blood supplies to insure that AIDS is not transmitted by transfusions. The measures were contained in a report by the Governor's task force on AIDS, which was made public today.
A few hours before Mr. Cuomo's announcement, the State Senate unanimously passed a bill that would provide $5.25 million for research programs and public information about AIDS. David Langdon, a spokesman for Assembly Speaker Stanley Fink, said Mr. Fink would wait for the Governor's opinion on the measure before acting.
In addition, Mr. Cuomo introduced legislation that would require funeral directors to provide full services to the families of AIDS victims.
Last week, the New York State Funeral Directors' Association called on its members not to embalm victims of AIDS until the Governor issued specific guidelines for safe handling in such cases.
The bill's chances for approval in the Legislature were unclear. The other measures outlined by Mr. Cuomo do not require legislative approval.
As part of the program, the State Public Health Council has ruled that beginning this week, doctors and hospitals must report cases of AIDS to their local health department, which in turn will inform the State Department of Health. The information will be kept confidential, said Peter Slocum, a spokesman for the department.
Mr. Slocum said the department would purchase some new laboratory equipment, at an initial cost of $100,000, and was working with the State Department of Corectional Services and New York City to find a hospital where state prisoners with AIDS could be treated.
The State Health Department has also granted $97,000 to the Gay Men's Health Crisis, a New York City group, to expand its counseling and educational programs statewide, Elizabeth Weiss, a spokesman for the Governor, said.
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