AIDS-Positive Anti-Bias Bill Sent to Deukmejian

Legislation that would prohibit discrimination against Californians who test positive for exposure to the AIDS virus was passed Tuesday by the state Senate and sent to Gov. George Deukmejian.

The bill by Assemblyman John Vasconcellos (D-Santa Clara), approved by a vote of 24 to 3, is aimed at encouraging people to seek testing by guaranteeing that they will not lose their jobs or housing if they test positive for the AIDS virus.

The measure would cover an estimated 250,000 to 300,000 Californians believed to carry the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) that causes AIDS. However, the legislation would not apply to people diagnosed as having acquired immune deficiency syndrome.

AIDS patients were excluded from the bill, Vasconcellos said, because they are already covered by a decision of the state Fair Employment and Housing Commission that bans job and housing discrimination against people diagnosed as having the disease.

“(The bill) is a device that will encourage folks to get tested,” Vasconcellos said after the Senate vote. “That has to be our foremost concern: to stop the spread of AIDS.”

Deukmejian, who twice vetoed measures in 1986 that would have prohibited discrimination against AIDS patients, has taken no position on Vasconcellos’ bill, a spokeswoman for the governor said.

But the Republican governor may face increasing pressure to sign the legislation now that President Reagan’s Commission on AIDS has called for a ban on discrimination against AIDS patients and those who have tested positive for the disease.

Vice President George Bush and Sen. Pete Wilson--two fellow Republicans who are hoping to win the support of California voters on Nov. 8--also have called for the adoption of anti-discrimination laws.

Vasconcellos’ bill would declare that anyone who has tested positive for exposure to the AIDS virus but has not come down with the disease would be entitled to the same protection from discrimination in employment and housing that people who are handicapped already receive.

The bill was sponsored by the California Medical Assn. in an attempt to persuade people who are at risk for AIDS to come forward and seek testing.

“It is a very important bill,” said William R. Cleveland, a lobbyist for the medical association. “Early diagnosis is the best way to control the spread of AIDS. This will ensure people that when they test and test positive, the law is going to protect them in employment and housing.”

The measure also is important, Cleveland said, because it is the “keystone” of the doctors’ legislative program for AIDS. With passage of this measure, it will be easier to win approval of a bill permitting all members of the health care team to be notified if a patient has tested positive for the AIDS virus, he said.

By excluding AIDS patients from the bill, its backers overcame resistance from lawmakers who in the past had opposed anti-discrimination protections. Last year, the Senate refused to pass a bill banning discrimination against people with AIDS.

Vasconcellos’ bill won the votes of 19 Democrats, four Republicans and one independent senator. Two Democrats and one Republican voted against the measure.

Sen. John Doolittle (R-Rocklin), a staunch opponent of the bill and other anti-discrimination proposals, called on Deukmejian to veto the measure.

“I don’t think anybody’s in favor of discrimination,” Doolittle said. But the conservative senator said he is concerned about carriers of the disease working in such fields as law enforcement, health care and food preparation.

“I oppose it because we’re dealing with a deadly disease we don’t understand,” Doolittle said. “There’s no way I would want someone infected with HIV handling my food.”