American Notes Health Care

After arriving by train from Florida, George Bergalis wheeled his emaciated daughter Kimberly into a packed hearing room in the Capitol. Her speech slurred and voice shaky, the terminally ill 23-year-old spent only 15 seconds describing her ordeal to lawmakers. But her message was shattering. Bergalis, who contracted the AIDS virus from her dentist, is leading a crusade to require that all health-care workers be tested for the virus to prevent infection.

"AIDS is a terrible disease that we must take seriously," she said. "I didn't do anything wrong, but I'm being made to suffer like this. My life has been taken away."

A bill sponsored by Republican Congressman William Dannemeyer of California would require health-care providers who perform invasive procedures to be tested for the virus. But critics pointed to the high cost of such widespread testing and argued that risk of medical professionals infecting their patients is so remote that Bergalis' dentist is the only one ever known to do so. That's small comfort for Kimberly.