A single line often inverts meaning once you see what it
answers, so neighbouring messages are always shown.
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July 16, 2014 - The situation is heating up considerably with regard to the three infractions that have occurred in HHS concerning potentially lethal microbes. The first was the finding of the smallpox vials in the FDA building (29A) on the NIH campus. The next was the egregious dysfunction of the teams involved in dealing with selective select agent research down at the CDC and third was the contamination at the CDC of a highly pathogenic influenza virus (H5N1) with a nonpathogenic influence virus (H7N9). This has been all over the media in a very intense way. The White House as well as the Department of Health and Human Services is involved. Francis Collins and I received a letter from Nobel laureates Paul Berg and Richard Roberts to discuss how we might address this escalating issue. They have been consistently against gain-of-function research, especially on influenza. In addition Francis and I together with Peggy Hamburg and Tom Frieden were called to a meeting this evening at HHS with Secretary Sylvia Burwell to discuss the HHS plan as well as the fact that Sylvia will be meeting with the POTUS on Friday, July 18 to discuss the matter and she needed to be briefed by us. I have suggested to Francis and he agrees that we call a temporary moratorium on all gain of function research on influenza and the MERS virus involving increasing pathogenesis and increasing transmissibility by the respiratory route. Also, Francis and I brought up (clearly my idea for some time now) to re-invigorate the NSABB and get them much more in the mix of recommendations and involvement. We had a good meeting with Sylvia Burwell in her office tonight that lasted from 7 PM to 9 PM. Francis and I will be talking over the phone tomorrow with Richard Roberts and Paul Berg about a plan for the future. Also, today Barry Bloom called me from the Harvard School of Public Health to ask whether or not he could help us in addressing this new and emerging political problem. In addition, I received a call from Michael Osterholm to warn me, as he is often doing, that there will be problems "for me" that he wants to help. I get concerned when Michael wants to "help" me. He generally gets hysterical about microbial threats and loves to be in the press.
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July 17, 2014 - Francis Collins and I had conference call with Richard Roberts and Marc Lipsitch regarding the above issues. Great conversation. We told them that changes were going to occur and that we cannot give details, but we are going to look carefully at all the issues. In particular, I told them that we were going to re-examine the risk/benefit ratio of doing gain-of-function research in influenza, in particular. They were pleased. July 17 - July 23, 2014 - Attended the 2014 International AIDS Society Meeting in Melbourne, Australia. Before I left, I became aware of a terrible tragedy that had occurred on July 17 the day that I left the NIH to travel to Melbourne. Malaysian Airlines flight 17 from Amsterdam to Melbourne via Kuala Lumpur was shot down by a surface to air missile likely fired by Ukrainian separatists/terrorists. This was to totally dominate the international news over the next days to weeks. I was quoted in most outlets. 297 people were killed including over 100 Dutch. Lost on the flight were six individuals who were flying to the meeting that I attended. Prominent among them was my longtime friend Joep Lange an Infectious Diseases/AIDS researcher from Amsterdam and his wife Jacqueline van Tongeren. In addition, well-known public health advocate and WHO spokesman Glenn Thomas and AIDS action group activist Martíne De Shutter were also on the plane in addition to AIDS activist Pim deKuijer and Dr. Lucie van Mens. I gave a number of media interviews discussing the terrible tragedy and the loss of our colleagues. This appeared in multiple media outlets. In particular, I was interviewed by David Gregory on Meet the Press on Sunday, July 20. The topic of the interview was the mood of the meeting and some personal reflections on Joep Lange. My Plenary Lecture was extremely well received and from my own vibrations of how the audience reacted, as well as how I felt, it clearly was one of the best lectures that I had given. The subject of the lecture with the scientific challenges of an HIV Cure and an HIV vaccine. There were a number of events of note throughout the meeting. Saturday, July 19 - Stayed at Crown Metropol Hotel (very elegant - on of nicest and most confortable hotels on all my international trips). I attended a dinner at a place called Rasheen which is an old and historic building in Melbourne that was formerly the residence of the Archbishop of Melbourne. The dinner was given by the Pratt foundation and the host was Ambassador John Berry, the United States ambassador to Australia. With him was his husband Curtis. I have to leave towards the end of the dinner in order to give an interview live on WTOP radio that was broadcast back in Washington. The interview was about the plane tragedy. Sunday, July 20 - I made a presentation on TB HIV followed by a panel discussion at the Crown Promenade Hotel where I was staying during the meeting. In addition, on that Sunday I made some opening remarks at a Point of Care Symposium that discussed rapid point of care diagnostics for viral load. That evening I went to the Opening Session of the conference which was really not very well done since there were many boring speeches. I had to leave towards the end in order to do the taped version for Meet the Press. Of note, Melbourne is 14 hours ahead of Washington DC. Therefore, even though I taped the Meet the Press session on what was Sunday evening in Melbourne, it was actually early morning in Washington DC. Went to Global Leaders reception at The Cargo Hall on the Wharf after the Opening Ceremony Monday, July 21 - I gave my plenary lecture. In addition I did a filming in celebration of the opening of the Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity. This is an Institute named after Peter Doherty, the Nobel prize-winning Australian immunologist. Peter was the other speaker at my symposium earlier that day. On Monday night I went to a reception at the Red Desert Dreaming Art Gallery at the Hilton Hotel. The reception was co-sponsored by CSIS with Stephen Morrison, together with Amb. John Berry. That night on Monday, July 21, I went to dinner with Mark Dybul at the Spice Temple Restaurant along the wharf. We discussed broad aspects of the AIDS pandemic and I came up with an interesting idea of providing resources to do phenotypic tracing of virus in hotspots in various regions including southern Africa and Washington DC. The purpose of the phenotypic tracing of viral transmissions was to determine if you test and treat and completely control the epidemic in any given region or location, would virus spill over back into that region and if so could one trace where it was coming from. This has particular relevance with regard to whether or not we would truly be able to end the AIDS pandemic and if we do would, we be able to end it in one region at the same time that it is raging in another region. I will go back to Washington and discuss with Carl Dieffenbach the possibility of funding such studies. Tuesday, July 22, 2014 - I did a Voice of America panel at the Convention Center on HIV AIDS stigma which was in association with a documentary film that was narrated by Elton John. I had a number of other meetings that dayincluding with Wayne Koff who tried to convince me to give major support of NIAID to his "Human Vaccines Project", which I am very skeptical about since it smacks of the old HIV Vaccine Enterprise. The latter was nothing more than a time sink. I was straight with Wayne and told him of my skepticism. I told him that I would watch to unfolding of the "project", but I cannot lend NIAID support at this time since I do not know what "it" really is and I really do not see any purpose for it. He understood, but he needs NIAID support for it to work. We left it amicably. Of particular note was a reception at the Club 23 in the Crown Towers Southbank of the Crown Hotel. The reception was hosted by the Kirby Institute and discussed the Test and Treat in Indonesia concept which Cliff Lane and I had been working with and have convinced the Minister of Health Dr. Mboi of Indonesia to go ahead with the study. In her remarks at the reception, Minister Mboi credited me with this idea and said it would not have happened had I not brought it up to her. This was very nice of her. On Tuesday evening we had the international AIDS Society Dinner at this Stokehouse City Restaurant, an elegant location in downtown Melbourne. The dinner was sponsored by Sharon Lewin and Françoise Barre-Sinoussi. It was an excellent time. After that I went to a birthday party for Jen Kates and Judy Auerbach in a saloon in the Provincial Hotel. Wednesday, July 23, 2014 - Departed on the extraordinarily long 26 hour trip back to Washington DC. I went from Melbourne to Sydney, Sydney to Los Angeles, and then Los Angeles to Washington DC. I traveled with Richard Koup and it was an uneventful trip. The day that I left, President Clinto arrived for his keynote. Thursday, July 24, 2014 - Continued press on the MH17 tragedy mixed with interest about the IAS Meeting in Melbourne. I appeared on NPR Radio "Tell Me More" with Michelle Martin. Of note, there has been a recent recommendation from WHO and prior to that from CDC that certain groups (MSM at high risk; discordant couples; heterosexuals who practice risk behavior) should use PrEP (Truvada), which has recently been approved by FDA for PrEP. There is a growing controversy about whether use of PrEP will actually lead to more risky behavior. Data say that it will not. Recent study presented in Melbourne by Bob Grant from UCSF (the OLE study - Off Line Extension of iPrEX) indicated that there was no increased in risky behavior with PrEP and people who took PrEP had less infections that those who did not and use condoms only. I appeared on NPR "Science Friday" to discuss this and other topics.
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July 25-28, 2014 - Major expansion of problem with Ebola outbreak in West Africa. Cases now up to >1100 with over 600 deaths in Guinew, Sierra Leone and Liberia. Of note, 3 MDs (one died) and one health worker (1 MD and health worker from USA) have been infected. Clearly there is breakdown of PPE even among good people who are trained. One patient left Liberia after his sister died of Ebola and he got on plane to Lagos, Nigeria and got sick and died in Nigeria. Massive presss interest now going on. Al networks (CNN, George Stephanopoulos, etc.) wanted me on TV but the ridiculous HHS and White House wanted to "define the message" before they let me or CDC on the air.
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July 29, 2014 Now HHS is allowing me to go on the air after all the major networks have already reported the Ebola situation. However, more to come. Did WTOP radio this AM and will do Canadian TV and Al Jazeera this evening.
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2014-07-30 00:00
Anthony S. Fauci
July 30, 2014 - Ebola situation really heating up. Now there are 1300 cases with 730 deaths. The person who got infected from his sister in Liberia and flew from Liberia to Nigeria and then got sick and died in Nigeria was an American citizen The Peace Corps is bringing home 340 volunteers from the 3 countries. Two volunteers have been exposed to an Ebola patient and are in isolation. Today was on MSNBC, NBC Nightly News, CNN and CNN with Jake Tapper, and Al Jazeera tonight. I have been invited to go on 3 Sunday Shows: This Week with George S.; Face the Nation; and State of the Union with Candy Crowley. White House still has not cleared any of these 3 and so I have no idea whether I will be able to do them. The WH communication people are really a bunch of assholes in that they try to "control the message" even though there really is not a complicated message here. The Networks want me for my medical expertise and because I am good on TV. What is the problem??
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July 31, 2014 - Major media blitz red hot on two concurrent issues. The Israel invasion of Gaza due to the incessant shelling by rockets of Israel cities by Hama from Gaza and the exploding Ebola situation. Was on CNN New Day this AM. Then did Diane Rehm with Laurie Garrett, Dan Lucey (Georgetown), Billy Fischer (UNC). After that did CNN with Jim Sciutto (Regis Graduate), then BBC radio "The World" and multiple print. In addition, to above Sunday Shows, now Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace wants me. Still no response from the White House
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August 1, 2014 - Samaratan's Purse (Charity Organization in Liberia) has decided to fly Kent Bartley and Nancy Whitebol (infected health workers) from Liberia to Emory Univerity in Atlanta. Emory has a CDC-designated Unit to take care of Ebola. They are on their way. Public blogs quite concerned about danger of this transporting to USA> I think that it sis dangerous for the patient's health for them to fly. I am assuring public anyway that it is safe, even though for the patient's sake, I would not have transferred them. Media frenzy continues. Tait Sye decided to give to Tom Frieden and the CDC all 6 of the Sunday Morning TV requests that came to me. We objected strongly (Courtney Billet and John Burklow), but to no avail. Tait is an asshole. He thinks there should be only one government voice on Sunday moming TV. Francis Collins called. Tait and e-mailed him with an excoriating response telling that he essentially did not know what he was doing. I did multiple print media today in addition to Fox National News, MSNBC, and China TV. They have now initiated daily (including weekends) calls with Secretary Burwell and also intra-NIH calls with Francis Collins. Questionable ethics in Samaritan's purse getting monoclonal antibodies from MAPP Biopharmaceuticals for their persons. We are funding the development of these antibodies (ZMAPP) but the company owns them. I will appear on CNN Special with Sanjay Gupta this evening at 4:30 PM War raging in Gaza. We also had meeting here at NIH is Medical Board room of the Clinical Research Center with a number of African Leaders including President Jakaya Kikwete of Tanzania and president Denis Sassou-Nguesso of the Republic of Congo and Minister of Health of Kenya James Macharia among other African ambassadors and staff. I presented an update on Ebola (which they were obviously interested in given the current media attention) as well as HIV, Malaria, etc. Good meeting. This is associated with the large African Leadership Summit that President Obama is hosting in DC this week. Obviously, people are asking (ignorant) whether it is safe to bring Africans to the USA now.
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August 3, 2014 -- Indeed Tait gave Frieden all of the Sunday AM shows. CNN repeated the clip of me on the Sanjay Gupta Special today (Sunday) at 7:30 AM. I appeared on MSNBC live at 3:00 PM and will do CBS Evening News Tonight. Also did Channel 9 Local News at 6:00 PM (taped). Questions arising about supply of antibodies and whether to use experimental therapies (all pre-clinical so far) in humasn via Emergency Use Authorizations and Compassionate use.
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August 4, 2014 -- Media frenzy continues regarding Ebola. Reports say that the ZMapp cocktail of 3 monoclonal antibodies given to Dr. Brantley resulted in "miraculous" improvement. Sanjay Gupta and I sparred (friendly) a bit about this on CNN since I said immediate (20 minutes after infusion) effect would be most unusual for an antibody. Did much, much media today: CBS This Morming with Charlie Rose (Live from in front of Building 31); CNN New Day with Sanjay Gupta; MSNBC with Chick Todd; WTOP Radio; NPR "Here and Now"; BBC radio; MSNBC; Hearst TV. Tonight I do MSNBC again at 8:15 PM from Nebraska Avenue and BBC Radio at 10:15 PM. Much discussion from the media about the role of "NIH scientists" in getting the ZMapp to Brantley. They are referring to Lisa Hensley. We needed to clear up her role in that CDC (Kevin DeCock) asked her to point Samaritan's Purse in the direction of the people who had the antibody. There was some feeling that there was some "government conspiracy". I will discipline Lisa when she returns from Liberia because she got out of her lane by getting involved in the procurement of the antibody. I am exhausted from media.