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(Washington DC) Hundreds of activists from ACT UP Philadelphia plan to confront George W. Bush today, "shutting down" the Republican Party's national headquarters. "We are reminding voters that a Bush presidency will be harmful to everyone's health," said ACT UP's Kate Sorensen. "Bush will hurt people with HIV, people trying to get off drugs, young people seeking to avoid HIV infection, and taxpayers and uninsured people bankrupted by the high cost of medicines," said ACT UP's Kate Sorensen.

DEMONSTRATION DETAILS: The activists will march a fiery funeral procession of coffins filled with thousands of empty pills to the Republican Headquarters, where ACT UP members will dump the contents at the entrance. The ACT UP gospel choir will sing a new version of the Yellow Rose of Texas, the Bush theme song. Njoki Nehru, a Kenyan activist from 50 Years is Enough will speak to the damage Bush will cause to poor nations the world over. John Bell, an HIV+ decorated Viet Nam veteran and member of ACT UP Philadelphia will talk about the Bush impact on domestic drug treatment and pharmaceutical policies. Susan Rodriguez, an HIV+ mother and NYC AIDS educator will speak to Bush education policies that leave children and teens with no access to life-saving information.

Arrests are expected.

TEXAS HEALTH DISASTER THREATENS UNITED STATES: Activists will detail how a Bush presidency will be disastrous for people with AIDS in the United States. Texas under Bush has one of the most negative health records in the United States. Texas ranks near the top in the nation in rates of AIDS, diabetes, and tuberculosis, and at the bottom in immunizations, mammograms, and access to physicians. Very high rates of infant mortality in Texas may be due to the very low numbers of residents with health insurance. 39.1% of Texas children lack health care. On August 14, a federal judge ordered Texas to come into compliance with a consent decree to improve quality of care for children.

"Bush has failed to utilize federal funding to provide health insurance coverage to children. He also refused to sign an order that would have used federal funding to salvage a bankrupt AIDS drug assistance program that provides medicine to middle class individuals to keep them healthy and working," stated ACT UP's Allison Dinsmore.

DRUG COMPANIES ARE BUSH'S CLOSEST ADVISORS: Bush has faced little scrutiny about conflicts of interest within his campaign's inner circle. Deborah Steelman, Bush's top health care advisor, heads the top drug company and HMO lobbying firm Steelman Enterprises, Inc. Recent articles report that Steelman would be tapped as Secretary of Health and Human Services for a Bush Administration, "Bush plans to turn over the nation's health to drug companies and HMOs," stated Dinsmore.

BUSH PRESIDENCY MEANS REPEAL OF CLINTON/GORE EXECUTIVE ORDER ON AIDS DRUGS FOR AFRICA: The demonstration in DC comes 13 months after Vice President Al Gore and US Trade Representative Charlene Barshefsky's September 17 announcement of a new trade policy where some poor countries (beginning with South Africa) would be permitted to manufacture affordable generic versions of expensive patented medications. Globally, 90% of people with HIV have no access to medicines that improve and greatly extend life. Infections rates in most sub-Saharan countries runs at 15-25% of the population. Almost all of Africa's 23 million people with HIV will die within 12 years without medicine.

"AIDS is decimating countries around the globe, due to drug company greed," said Bob Kahn of ACT UP. "The lives of millions of destitute people with AIDS are inconsequential to Bush and his industry cronies. This kind of compassion we don't need."

"Governor Bush will reverse a hard-won new US trade policy on patented drugs. The reversal will leave millions of Africans for dead, while soaking US taxpayers. Under a Bush Administration, Americans will be forced to continue subsidizing the exorbitant profits of the price gouging pharmaceutical industry, while denying medicine to millions. Drug companies would lose very little in profits money if poor nations had generic drugs ­ Africa only accounts for 1.5% of the global pharmaceutical market" said ACT UP Philadelphia's Paul Davis. "The next President must help poor nations manufacture generic versions of expensive life-preserving medicine." Davis noted that Brazil made international headlines in July when it's government pledged to provide technical assistance to African nations seeking to set up local factories to provide free AIDS drugs.

ACT UP is widely credited with forcing significant change in US trade policy on access to cheap, generic AIDS drugs after the group targeted the Clinton/Gore Administration with a series of "zaps" and major demonstrations. These actions included disruptions of the first several months of Vice President Al Gore's campaign appearances. Following confrontations with the AIDS activists, the Administration recanted, announcing a shift in domestic policy to one of flexibility on the issue of access to medication versus drug company intellectual property protection.

On May 10, 2000, President Clinton issued an Executive Order halting the US Government's routine practice of bullying sub-Saharan countries pursuing WTO-legal options to manufacture generic versions of expensive patented medicines. "We fear that a drug-industry backed Bush Administration would reverse the executive order. With 24.5 million African lives at stake, AIDS drugs for Africa must become a campaign issue for Bush as it already has for Gore." stated ACT UP's Paul Davis.

ACT UP members report that requests for a meeting with the campaign was not responded to, nor was a written request for information. Bush has failed to respond to requests from physician's groups and from the media for his position on patented pharmaceuticals in poor countries.

MEDICARE PRESCRIPTION PLAN IS CORPORATE WELFARE: Citing Bush's Medicare prescription coverage plan, AIDS activists charge Bush with supporting drug companies and insurance firms instead of people with AIDS. "Bush's Medicare plan is corporate welfare, pure and simple," said Laura McTighe of ACT UP. "Rather than the common-sense, free market approach of Gore, which allows the Medicare program to utilize its bulk purchasing power to limit price increases, the Bush's plan would reward HMOs for creating a complicated scheme of reimbursement and coverage that will limit the benefits and permit drug companies to keep prices high. Taxpayers will continue subsidizing the enormous profits of the pharmaceutical industry."

BUSH HEALTH EDUCATION POLICY COSTS YOUNG LIVES, BUT WINS THE ULTRA-RIGHT: Governor Bush relentlessly mandated 'abstinence-only' curricula for public schools, in spite of the fact that withholding safer sex information results in higher infection rates among teenagers. On several occasions, Bush refused or canceled federal funding for education programs because he feared they might require safer sex education (he was wrong). This added up to over $1.8 million in school funding refused by Bush. Texas has one of the highest rates of teenage pregnancy in the nation.

"We are bringing these coffins to Bush because that is what he is offering our kids," said ACT UP's Dawn Acero. "This is a dangerous way to win the votes of the extremist conservatives. We demand condoms, not coffins," she said.

BUSH DRUG TREATMENT POLICY MEANS MORE PRISONS, LESS RECOVERY: After his election as Governor, Bush proceeded to slash spending on drug treatment programs by more than half. At the same time, he oversaw massive increases in prison building. When asked for justifications, Bush stated that "incarceration is rehabilitation."

In Texas, beds available for drug treatment decreased from 12,500 to 5,800 after the spending cuts. The number of inmates in prison on drug nearly doubled from 17,087 to 28,636.

ACT UP DEMANDS FOR PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES: