Ambassador Eric Goosby, MD, the nation’s AIDS “czar” and an infectious disease specialist who treated HIV/AIDS patients in the early days of the epidemic, will visit Stanford School of Medicine next Thursday, May 30, for a conversation on global health.
Early in his career, Goosby treated AIDS patients at San Francisco General Hospital, back in the days when there were limited options for treatment (I remember crossing paths with him then, as I was a writer with University of California-San Francisco and based at the hospital).
Goosby has since gone on to major positions within the Clinton and now, the Obama, administrations. As the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator, he directs the President’s Emergency Fund for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), the nation’s premier international AIDS program begun in 2003 under the Bush administration. In recent years, he has come under fire from activists who believe the Obama administration has fallen back on its commitment to the program, whose budget has remained constant after years of substantial increases.
But at the International AIDS Conference in Vienna in 2008, former President Bill Clinton defended Goosby before an audience of thousands, saying he’s a good man with the best of intentions.
In addition to his work with PEPFAR, Goosby is the U.S. liaison with the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, the international public/private partnership that provides antiretroviral medication to patients in developing countries. Goosby also leads the new Office of Global Health Diplomacy at the State Department.
I've heard Goosby speak on several occasions and found him to be an engaging and inspiring speaker with a deep understanding of global health needs.
The Stanford program will be held at 5:45 p.m. at the Li Ka Shing Center for Learning and Knowledge on the medical school campus. It’s free and open to the public, though registration is required.
Previously: Video: Kaiser Family Foundation town hall with U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator and New AIDS czar a good fit
