by
Amy NunnAmy Nunn

In 1992, the World Bank warned that Brazil would face enormous challenges confronting the AIDS crisis, and forecast that Brazil would have 1.2 million people living with HIV by the year 2000. Today, AIDS prevalence in Brazil is approximately 660,000, and Brazil is home to the oldest and one of the largest public AIDS treatment programs in the developing world. Challenging the conventional wisdom that AIDS treatment was infeasible in developing countries, Brazil has halved AIDS-related deaths and dramatically reduced AIDS-related morbidity. Today, Brazil’s AIDS program is considered a global model. The first book to narrate Brazil’s complex and inspiring history, The Politics and History of AIDS Treatment in Brazil traces development of Brazil’s AIDS treatment policies during the country’s tumultuous path to democracy as its government redefined access to health care as a basic right. Meticulously researched, and drawing on dozens of interviews with politicians, activists, people living with HIV/AIDS, pharmaceutical executives and health care providers, this profound volume explains the key role of Brazil in raising global AIDS consciousness. The Politics and History of AIDS Treatment in Brazil also explores the global implications of Brazil’s program and identifies the challenges ahead for addressing HIV/AIDS in the developing world. In clear, accessible detail, The Politics and History of AIDS Treatment in Brazil examines:
• Brazil’s long history of AIDS treatment in the context of progressive social movements.
• The coalition-building between politicians, activists and government agencies in developing the country’s National AIDS Program.
• The role of the executive, legislative and judicial branches of government in promoting access to drugs for AIDS treatment in Brazil.
• The government’s controversial decisions to produce generic AIDS drugs and challenge multinational pharmaceutical corporations regarding AIDS drug price

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