ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the demographic distribution of pediatric Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) in the United States and analyzes the public policies for each age group. The analysis will emphasize the nature and implications of the contradiction between the epidemiological reality of pediatric AIDS and the response of state, local, and federal governments through funding, targeted programs, and other forms of legislation. Pediatric AIDS cases constitute approximately 2 percent of the United States total, but cases among children pose a growing concern. Pediatric cases have occurred disproportionately in poor, inner-city populations with high rates of drug use and sexually transmitted diseases. Transmission patterns for adolescents are similar to adult patterns, but sociodemographic trends are magnified, with the proportion of cases among the poor and minorities far overrepresented. Poverty emerges as the critical cofactor for AIDS and for most other causes of infant, childhood, and adolescent mortality.
