A Promising Anti-HIV Drug Poses A Dilemma

If you live in a wealthy country, you have choices about your medical care.

Let's say you're a young woman who is HIV-positive and find out there's a new treatment that's much better for your long-term health. But there's a potential problem: If you get pregnant, the drug could cause a serious birth defect in your baby.

In the U.S., Europe and other wealthy areas, a doctor will explain the benefits and the risks. If you choose the new drug, the doctor will prescribe birth control. If you want to get pregnant, the doctor will guide you through a period of taking the old drug, then get you back on the better drug when it no longer could endanger the fetus.

Now, say you live in a poor country. There aren't enough doctors and nurses to explain the risks and benefits of the new drug to every