HEALTH

FEDERAL RESEARCHERS TESTED AIDS DRUGS ON HUNDREDS OF FOSTER CHILDREN

WASHINGTON – Government-funded researchers tested AIDS drugs on hundreds of foster children over the past two decades, often without providing them a basic protection afforded in federal law and required by some states, a review has found. The research funded by the National Institutes of Health spanned the country. It was most widespread in the 1990s as foster care agencies sought treatments for their HIV-infected children that weren’t yet available in the marketplace.

The practice ensured that foster children – mostly poor or minority – received care from world-class researchers at government expense, slowing their rate of death and extending their lives. But it also exposed a vulnerable population to the risks of medical research and drugs that were known to have serious side effects in adults and for which the safety for children was unknown.

The research was conducted in at least seven states – Illinois, Louisiana, Maryland, New York, North Carolina, Colorado, and Texas – and involved more than four dozen different studies. The foster children ranged from infants to late teens, according to interviews and government records. Several studies that enlisted foster children reported patients suffered side effects such as rashes, vomiting, and sharp drops in infection-fighting blood cells as they tested antiretroviral drugs to suppress AIDS or other medicines to treat secondary infections. In one study, researchers reported a “disturbing” higher death rate among children who took higher doses of a drug. That study was unable to determine a safe and effective dosage.

– Associated Press

SOUTHWEST

FORMER CONGRESSMAN MOUNTS CHALLENGE FOR DeLAY’S SEAT

STAFFORD, Texas – A former Democratic congressman announced yesterday that he will try to win the seat held by Republican House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, who has been hounded by allegations of ethics violations.

“We need leaders with a high standard of accountability to the public who will recognize that there is only one standard for ethical behavior,” Nick Lampson told reporters gathered on the front lawn of his aunt’s house in suburban Houston.

Although Mr. Lampson peppered his remarks with comments about an ethics controversy Mr. DeLay is facing, he claimed he would focus on his record from four terms in Congress and his knowledge of the district’s needs.

Separately, Republicans backtracked in an ethics controversy yesterday for the second time in two weeks, deciding that two GOP members of the ethics committee should withdraw from any investigation of Mr. DeLay because they contributed to the majority leader’s legal defense funds.The decision followed months of Democratic complaints that Speaker Dennis Hastert appointed Republicans Lamar Smith of Texas and Tom Cole of Oklahoma to make the panel more favorable to Mr. DeLay.

– Associated Press

WASHINGTON

REPORT: PROGRESS IN HIRING, TRAINING FBI INTELLIGENCE ANALYSTS

The FBI still isn’t hiring intelligence analysts fast enough, with one in three positions vacant last fall, the Justice Department inspector general reported yesterday.

Once hired, too few analysts are assigned to FBI field offices and many reported being asked to perform clerical and other tasks that took them away from intelligence work, Glenn Fine said in a 173-page audit. Mr. Fine did say, however, that while many jobs remain unfilled, there are 37% more analysts now than before the September 11, 2001, attacks. And he said that those hired in the past three years are better qualified and more likely to speak at least one foreign language.

The report is the latest to monitor the FBI’s attempt to step up domestic intelligence-gathering to counter terrorist attacks in this country. The FBI faced heavy criticism for its failure to piece together evidence that could have alerted authorities to the September 11 attacks. A major problem has been the FBI’s inability to meet its hiring goals, partly because the hiring process takes so long, Mr. Fine said. The FBI hired less than 40% of its goal of 787 analysts by September 30, 2004. The bureau has since speeded up its system of evaluating and checking the backgrounds of prospective analysts, he said.

– Associated Press

BILL CALLS FOR INCREASE IN DEATH BENEFIT FOR SOLDIERS KILLED IN COMBAT

The death benefit to families of troops killed in combat zones would jump nearly tenfold – from $12,000 to $100,000 – under an $82 billion spending package for Iraq and Afghanistan that is headed for final votes in the House and Senate.

President Bush gets most of what he asked for in final legislation that House and Senate negotiators agreed on Tuesday. The measure reflects a desire by lawmakers to give the Pentagon what it needs while holding the line on State Department spending. The House is to vote on the measure today. The Senate is expected to take up the measure next week when it returns from a weeklong recess.

Overall, the legislation is the fifth such emergency-spending package Congress has taken up since the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. It pushes the costs of the two conflicts and other efforts to fight terrorism worldwide over four years beyond $300 billion. Congress had promised to pay only for urgent items in the spending package, but the final legislation ended up with the same overall price tag as the president’s proposal.

– Associated Press