The Cure that Failed

Lindsey nagel was born in Petrosani, Rumania, in October 1990. She was adopted by a Minneapolis couple, Cheryl and Steve Nagel, who brought her back to the States later that year. Within a few weeks, they were dismayed to find that she had tested positive for HIV. Although she showed no symptoms of disease, the Nagels’ doctor put her on Retrovir syrup, otherwise known as AZT. In response to protests by homosexual activists this drug had been hurriedly approved by the FDA in 1987. “The government bends to AIDS victims’ pleas,” was the way U.S. News & World Report headlined a critical story at the time.

Mr. Bethell, an NR contributor, is Washington correspondent for The American Spectator.

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Tom Bethell

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Lindsey nagel was born in Petrosani, Rumania, in October 1990. She was adopted by a Minneapolis couple, Cheryl and Steve Nagel, who brought her back to the States later that year. Within a few weeks, they were dismayed to find that she had tested positive for HIV. Although she showed no symptoms of disease, the Nagels’ doctor put her on Retrovir syrup, otherwise known as AZT. In response to protests by homosexual activists this drug had been hurriedly approved by the FDA in 1987. “The government bends to AIDS victims’ pleas,” was the way U.S. News & World Report headlined a critical story at the time.

Mr. Bethell, an NR contributor, is Washington correspondent for The American Spectator.