1
00:00:02,920 --> 00:00:04,297
Is it worth me
dying for this?

2
00:00:05,298 --> 00:00:06,215
That's so dramatic (laughs).

3
00:00:08,926 --> 00:00:10,136
Interviewer: You're like,

4
00:00:10,178 --> 00:00:11,637
"as long as you get it on tape."

5
00:00:11,679 --> 00:00:12,346
(laughs) Oh my God.

6
00:00:17,435 --> 00:00:20,646
My commitment to this trial, it,

7
00:00:20,688 --> 00:00:21,981
yeah, it's worth, it
is worth dying for.

8
00:00:22,023 --> 00:00:23,816
(touching music)

9
00:00:29,405 --> 00:00:31,866
My name is Jeffrey Drew.

10
00:00:31,908 --> 00:00:33,034
I have been HIV positive

11
00:00:33,076 --> 00:00:34,327
for over 32 years now.

12
00:00:36,621 --> 00:00:38,247
(touching music)

13
00:00:46,506 --> 00:00:48,716
Judge: Do you
swear or affirm

14
00:00:48,758 --> 00:00:51,260
that the testimony you
are about to give

15
00:00:51,302 --> 00:00:53,429
is the truth, the whole truth

16
00:00:53,471 --> 00:00:55,056
and nothing but the
truth, so help you God?

17
00:00:55,098 --> 00:00:56,307
Group: I do.

18
00:00:58,434 --> 00:01:01,187
In 1995, we told
patients with AIDS

19
00:01:01,229 --> 00:01:03,523
they would
with certainty die.

20
00:01:03,564 --> 00:01:06,192
AIDS plagued
my internship.

21
00:01:06,234 --> 00:01:08,277
By the end of that year,

22
00:01:08,319 --> 00:01:11,114
we had an FDA approved
HIV cocktail,

23
00:01:11,155 --> 00:01:13,449
three drugs up to
14 pills a day,

24
00:01:13,491 --> 00:01:15,576
which if taken without fail,

25
00:01:15,618 --> 00:01:18,871
allowed AIDS patients to live.

26
00:01:18,913 --> 00:01:21,374
At the time, the three
drugs of the cocktail

27
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cost a total of $15,000
per person per year,

28
00:01:25,336 --> 00:01:27,714
but the cost of these
drug regiments today

29
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is $40,000 to $50,000
per person per year,

30
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A 300% increase
in 25 years.

31
00:01:35,012 --> 00:01:37,223
I just believe that
it's my responsibility

32
00:01:37,265 --> 00:01:40,643
as a human being just to
try to do my best here,

33
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and if that means helping
to gather information

34
00:01:43,354 --> 00:01:45,857
for a cure, that appeals to me.

35
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I had heard about the
trial the summer,

36
00:01:56,659 --> 00:01:58,327
the beginning of the
summer of 2019.

37
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They had already started,

38
00:02:00,538 --> 00:02:03,791
they had a few people
involved with patient one,

39
00:02:03,833 --> 00:02:08,546
and so there was an
excitement about it

40
00:02:08,588 --> 00:02:10,173
and wasn't attached to big
pharma, and I thought,

41
00:02:10,214 --> 00:02:11,841
"oh, that's interesting,"

42
00:02:11,883 --> 00:02:15,678
and so it took me
awhile to consider it

43
00:02:15,720 --> 00:02:20,600
because I didn't know
what it exactly entailed.

44
00:02:20,641 --> 00:02:23,770
I was concerned about in the
long term, what would happen,

45
00:02:23,811 --> 00:02:28,024
and even my HIV doctor, I
might as well just say this.

46
00:02:28,066 --> 00:02:30,443
I mean, they don't know that
I've been doing this study

47
00:02:30,485 --> 00:02:33,654
and I've just kept it from them,

48
00:02:33,696 --> 00:02:35,323
because I don't want to be
cut off from the system.

49
00:02:37,575 --> 00:02:39,577
I've been keeping
all my medications

50
00:02:39,619 --> 00:02:40,453
because I don't know if
I'm going to need them.

51
00:02:43,915 --> 00:02:45,208
Interviewer: Does
that scare you?

52
00:02:45,249 --> 00:02:46,459
It scares the
shit out of me.

53
00:02:49,921 --> 00:02:50,713
Interviewer: About
how many dollars

54
00:02:50,755 --> 00:02:52,340
do you think this is worth?

55
00:02:52,382 --> 00:02:55,426
Thousands I would say.

56
00:02:55,468 --> 00:02:56,844
Yeah, yeah, but this one's
most important (laughs).

57
00:03:00,765 --> 00:03:03,226
There's a law
allowing physicians and
patients

58
00:03:03,267 --> 00:03:06,062
to try something
experimental

59
00:03:06,104 --> 00:03:08,898
If the currently available
medications aren't working.

60
00:03:08,940 --> 00:03:10,942
it's called the
Right to Try law,

61
00:03:10,983 --> 00:03:14,153
and this is part of that.

62
00:03:14,195 --> 00:03:16,531
It's not really a
clinical trial.

63
00:03:16,572 --> 00:03:19,033
It's really kind of a
alternative, experimental,

64
00:03:19,075 --> 00:03:21,911
investigational treatment
for individuals

65
00:03:21,953 --> 00:03:24,914
whose virus is not
responding well,

66
00:03:24,956 --> 00:03:28,584
and if their results
are promising,

67
00:03:28,626 --> 00:03:30,128
then you can present
it to the FDA

68
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and do a real clinical trial.

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00:03:35,883 --> 00:03:38,636
The right to try.
It's my body.

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00:03:38,678 --> 00:03:41,514
It's my body. What I
choose to do with it,

71
00:03:41,556 --> 00:03:43,433
and just gathering that
information for these people

72
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is my small way of being a part

73
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of hopefully finding a cure.

74
00:03:50,189 --> 00:03:52,316
You know, the
tragedy is,

75
00:03:52,358 --> 00:03:53,818
is there are more
people living with HIV

76
00:03:53,860 --> 00:03:56,404
in the US today than there
ever has been in history,

77
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but it's not something
that is hitting

78
00:03:57,613 --> 00:03:58,489
the front pages anymore.

79
00:04:02,368 --> 00:04:07,373
(big band music)

80
00:04:07,415 --> 00:04:08,958
My name is Jeffrey and I'm
Miss Nevada, Miss Lotta
Slots.

81
00:04:09,000 --> 00:04:10,376
(applause)

82
00:04:13,671 --> 00:04:16,340
Announcer: Ladies
and gentlemen,

83
00:04:16,382 --> 00:04:18,760
please help me welcome, from
the Sahara Hotel, Lotta Slots.

84
00:04:21,345 --> 00:04:23,473
I first started
becoming involved

85
00:04:23,514 --> 00:04:28,728
with Best in Drag show in 1996.

86
00:04:28,770 --> 00:04:30,605
Alexis Pitman asked me
to be a part of it,

87
00:04:30,646 --> 00:04:33,149
and it was this
fundraiser to raise money

88
00:04:33,191 --> 00:04:35,651
for people living with
AIDS who needed help

89
00:04:35,693 --> 00:04:38,321
with housing or food
or paying their bills.

90
00:04:38,362 --> 00:04:39,655
Announcer: Our girl,
Miss Nevada.

91
00:04:39,697 --> 00:04:41,699
Now, wait a minute.

92
00:04:41,741 --> 00:04:44,494
Exactly how did she win
the Miss Nevada Pageant?

93
00:04:44,535 --> 00:04:46,496
Pageant Host: Honey,
that girl is so lucky,

94
00:04:46,537 --> 00:04:48,581
there is a horse shoe
up her ass. Honey, oh.

95
00:04:48,623 --> 00:04:52,502
Announcer: Explains that
walk, doesn't it?

96
00:04:52,543 --> 00:04:53,419
Six, seven, then eight.

97
00:04:58,925 --> 00:05:02,720
For an eight and a
two, and then hold up.

98
00:05:02,762 --> 00:05:04,680
Jeffrey's participation
in the Best in Drag Show.

99
00:05:04,722 --> 00:05:07,517
over the past 25 years
has been extraordinary

100
00:05:07,558 --> 00:05:10,311
and he is part
of a group of men

101
00:05:10,353 --> 00:05:12,271
that have raised over
$5 million for this agency.

102
00:05:12,313 --> 00:05:15,149
When he took over the show,

103
00:05:15,191 --> 00:05:18,820
it was a monumental undertaking
because it's 200 volunteers.

104
00:05:18,861 --> 00:05:20,822
It's like wrangling
cats, but the point is,

105
00:05:20,863 --> 00:05:22,990
is that Jeffrey has
made a commitment

106
00:05:23,032 --> 00:05:24,951
to make sure that the
show is his very best

107
00:05:24,992 --> 00:05:27,787
that it can possibly be
year in and year out.

108
00:05:27,829 --> 00:05:30,706
He's synonymous today with
the Best in Drag Show.

109
00:05:30,748 --> 00:05:31,707
We need to keep pushing
for more funding,

110
00:05:31,749 --> 00:05:34,210
getting involved
in raising money,

111
00:05:34,252 --> 00:05:36,754
and supporting groups
like Aid for AIDS,

112
00:05:36,796 --> 00:05:39,173
and as my great, great friend,
Sammy Davis Jr. told me,

113
00:05:39,215 --> 00:05:40,675
(crowd laughs)

114
00:05:47,598 --> 00:05:50,184
"What the world needs now
is love sweet love."

115
00:05:50,226 --> 00:05:51,602
(applause)

116
00:05:54,856 --> 00:05:56,149
[Event Host] That's the
most we've ever raised.

117
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The most it's ever been
before. Thank you so much.

118
00:06:07,368 --> 00:06:08,661
It's a treatable
disease,

119
00:06:08,703 --> 00:06:11,414
and so I believe this is all

120
00:06:11,456 --> 00:06:14,667
about monopoly and making money.

121
00:06:14,709 --> 00:06:17,754
Even with this
trial that I'm on,

122
00:06:17,795 --> 00:06:18,921
there are five or six
others happening, too.

123
00:06:21,841 --> 00:06:22,633
There are two
schools of thought

124
00:06:22,675 --> 00:06:23,760
about why they're secretive.

125
00:06:23,801 --> 00:06:25,845
Number one is to
maintain the integrity,

126
00:06:25,887 --> 00:06:27,889
and then there is a
school of thinking

127
00:06:27,930 --> 00:06:30,349
that says drug companies
are in the business

128
00:06:30,391 --> 00:06:33,352
of treating diseases, not
necessarily curing diseases,

129
00:06:33,394 --> 00:06:35,772
so those who may be looking
to actually cure a disease

130
00:06:35,813 --> 00:06:37,690
may be at risk of
being bought out,

131
00:06:37,732 --> 00:06:38,733
having their process challenged.

132
00:06:53,456 --> 00:06:54,791
Interviewer: Are you
nervous at all?

133
00:06:54,832 --> 00:06:58,127
I'm always nervous
when I come here.

134
00:06:58,169 --> 00:07:01,089
I think we're getting
test results today,

135
00:07:01,130 --> 00:07:05,093
but we're getting the whole
kit and caboodle, yeah.

136
00:07:05,134 --> 00:07:07,637
They talk about this
race to find a cure,

137
00:07:07,678 --> 00:07:10,807
and I don't know if
that's true anymore,

138
00:07:10,848 --> 00:07:11,849
and we see it even with PrEP.

139
00:07:17,021 --> 00:07:18,564
(sad music)

140
00:07:27,532 --> 00:07:31,077
When I think about
the fact that Truvada for
PrEP

141
00:07:31,119 --> 00:07:32,870
is only getting to 10%
of the people that need it,

142
00:07:36,416 --> 00:07:37,708
What about the other 90%?

143
00:07:39,544 --> 00:07:41,587
What about their families?

144
00:07:41,629 --> 00:07:44,006
Gilliad
has shown as,

145
00:07:44,048 --> 00:07:46,008
as unfortunately many
other big pharmaceutical
companies

146
00:07:46,050 --> 00:07:47,343
have shown, that they're
willing to put profits

147
00:07:47,385 --> 00:07:50,888
over patient health.

148
00:07:50,930 --> 00:07:51,681
So the list price is
almost $2,000 in the United
States.

149
00:07:51,723 --> 00:07:53,057
Why is it $8 in Australia?

150
00:07:55,351 --> 00:07:56,686
Truvada, it still
has patent protection

151
00:08:00,314 --> 00:08:00,815
in the United States and
in the rest of the world,

152
00:08:00,857 --> 00:08:02,066
it is generic.

153
00:08:02,108 --> 00:08:03,484
I can't comment on
the price in Australia

154
00:08:03,526 --> 00:08:05,862
of the generic medicines.

155
00:08:05,903 --> 00:08:09,490
In Australia,
PrEP is $8 a month.

156
00:08:09,532 --> 00:08:11,075
In the United States,
it's almost $2,000 a month.

157
00:08:13,411 --> 00:08:15,079
(crickets chirping)

158
00:08:21,210 --> 00:08:24,088
Yeah, feeling lousy
after eight hours

159
00:08:26,382 --> 00:08:28,676
of (coughs) doing a kind of,

160
00:08:33,931 --> 00:08:36,225
having somebody
else's healthy cells

161
00:08:36,267 --> 00:08:38,853
injected into me,

162
00:08:38,895 --> 00:08:41,981
and then I came home
and I was okay,

163
00:08:45,610 --> 00:08:47,153
and they were surprised that
I wasn't a lot more sick.

164
00:08:51,949 --> 00:08:53,034
Creating new immunity
is something that

165
00:08:53,076 --> 00:08:55,369
the only way we've
ever done that

166
00:08:55,411 --> 00:08:59,165
is by taking people who have
life-threatening cancers

167
00:08:59,207 --> 00:09:01,584
and wiping out their
immune system

168
00:09:01,626 --> 00:09:03,503
with very highly
toxic chemotherapy,

169
00:09:03,544 --> 00:09:05,838
and during this period of time,

170
00:09:05,880 --> 00:09:09,384
they are at tremendous
risk of death,

171
00:09:09,425 --> 00:09:11,094
tremendous risk of death,

172
00:09:11,135 --> 00:09:14,430
probably about a 30 to
40% chance of dying.

173
00:09:14,472 --> 00:09:17,767
So they, this kind of
procedure is not one

174
00:09:17,809 --> 00:09:19,560
that's going to be
done for the masses.

175
00:09:19,602 --> 00:09:22,522
We're seeing whether
or not we can do

176
00:09:22,563 --> 00:09:26,234
a kind of a stem
cell transplant,

177
00:09:26,275 --> 00:09:29,529
not a full one where we
wipe his immune system

178
00:09:29,570 --> 00:09:30,863
out completely, because we
don't want to do that to him.

179
00:09:32,615 --> 00:09:33,991
(sad music)

180
00:09:37,412 --> 00:09:41,457
This is not about
the vilifying of profit.

181
00:09:41,499 --> 00:09:45,336
This is about the
vilifying of choosing profit
over people,

182
00:09:45,378 --> 00:09:50,341
and if we know that
a new person is infected

183
00:09:50,383 --> 00:09:53,302
every 15 minutes and we've
been here two and a half hours,

184
00:09:53,344 --> 00:09:58,141
that's 10 more people
who have been infected.

185
00:09:58,182 --> 00:09:59,809
The more time we waste,
the more lives that we are
losing.

186
00:10:03,688 --> 00:10:05,815
It's been a rough week.

187
00:10:05,857 --> 00:10:08,359
So, it was a week of (exhales)

188
00:10:15,366 --> 00:10:18,202
chemo, learning how to inject
myself with the chemo,

189
00:10:18,244 --> 00:10:21,205
and going in and getting
the vaccine also,

190
00:10:25,376 --> 00:10:28,755
and then all of a
sudden it hit like,

191
00:10:28,796 --> 00:10:30,256
between the chills
and the fever,

192
00:10:30,298 --> 00:10:33,009
and shitting on myself,
and throwing up,

193
00:10:33,051 --> 00:10:35,470
and everything else,

194
00:10:35,511 --> 00:10:37,889
and I just keep saying,
"what have I done?"

195
00:10:42,393 --> 00:10:44,187
(water running)

196
00:10:46,689 --> 00:10:48,399
(crickets chirping)

197
00:10:55,031 --> 00:10:57,992
I was just stuck here.
I couldn't move.

198
00:10:58,034 --> 00:10:59,327
The only way I was going
out was to walk my dog.

199
00:11:01,913 --> 00:11:03,331
A couple of times,

200
00:11:03,372 --> 00:11:05,208
I'd just be walking
down the street

201
00:11:05,249 --> 00:11:06,375
and all of a sudden my
body would just start

202
00:11:06,417 --> 00:11:08,503
shitting on itself
without even knowing

203
00:11:08,544 --> 00:11:09,212
what was happening,

204
00:11:12,298 --> 00:11:14,425
and then I would think what
would happen to me if I died,

205
00:11:18,930 --> 00:11:21,391
and then I would think, then
I would think (laughs),

206
00:11:25,144 --> 00:11:29,065
"who would be mad,
who would be sad,"

207
00:11:29,107 --> 00:11:31,567
"and who would be happy
that I was dead?"

208
00:11:31,609 --> 00:11:35,363
(laughs)

209
00:11:35,405 --> 00:11:37,115
That's what I would
think about, yeah.

210
00:11:38,324 --> 00:11:39,951
(laughs)

211
00:11:43,287 --> 00:11:45,581
Yeah, that's what happens
when you have a fever.

212
00:11:45,623 --> 00:11:47,041
(laughs)

213
00:11:49,669 --> 00:11:51,421
(melancholy music)

214
00:12:14,527 --> 00:12:16,154
My friends and I were just
sitting around waiting

215
00:12:16,195 --> 00:12:17,613
to see who was going
to die first,

216
00:12:17,655 --> 00:12:19,657
and we watched them.

217
00:12:19,699 --> 00:12:22,118
We watched our friends
go one by one by one,

218
00:12:22,160 --> 00:12:25,455
we took care of them. We
were bedside with them.

219
00:12:25,496 --> 00:12:27,623
We were feeding them. We
were changing all that

220
00:12:27,665 --> 00:12:30,126
I don't want to say trauma,
but it was, it was rough.

221
00:12:32,503 --> 00:12:34,547
It was rough,

222
00:12:34,589 --> 00:12:37,467
and these men were dying
with dignity and humor.

223
00:12:37,508 --> 00:12:40,636
Oh my God, humor.

224
00:12:40,678 --> 00:12:42,096
I don't want people to
forget their names,

225
00:12:47,977 --> 00:12:48,561
because sometimes,
some days I do.

226
00:12:49,937 --> 00:12:51,230
I forget about them.

227
00:12:52,023 --> 00:12:53,357
(sad music)

228
00:13:01,282 --> 00:13:04,660
I'm always busy doing things
and going places and stuff,

229
00:13:04,702 --> 00:13:07,789
and this really slowed
it down, you know,

230
00:13:07,830 --> 00:13:12,335
and each day I feel better,
but at the worst of it,

231
00:13:12,377 --> 00:13:13,419
I was like, "what
the fuck did I do?"

232
00:13:16,255 --> 00:13:18,841
and there's nobody to
blame, but myself,

233
00:13:18,883 --> 00:13:22,678
so it's not like you can go
for a sympathy with anybody,

234
00:13:22,720 --> 00:13:27,350
(laughs) so, and it kinda
just kinda freaks people out

235
00:13:27,392 --> 00:13:28,601
that you're just playing
with your body this way.

236
00:13:30,103 --> 00:13:31,938
(birds chirping)

237
00:13:50,915 --> 00:13:53,835
It all goes back
to the initial patent

238
00:13:53,876 --> 00:13:55,044
that Gilead was able to secure

239
00:13:55,086 --> 00:13:57,964
on the pro-drug Tenofovir.

240
00:13:58,005 --> 00:14:00,591
Their sole control
over this molecule

241
00:14:00,633 --> 00:14:03,136
from the mid nineties
has led to their hold

242
00:14:03,177 --> 00:14:06,431
over the HIV medication market.

243
00:14:06,472 --> 00:14:09,892
It's a common theme
to do evergreening,

244
00:14:09,934 --> 00:14:12,395
which is when a patent holder
will make small tweaks

245
00:14:12,437 --> 00:14:14,814
to the patent to extend
their exclusivity period

246
00:14:14,856 --> 00:14:18,151
and keep drug prices high.

247
00:14:18,192 --> 00:14:19,986
The public, we, the
people develop this drug.

248
00:14:20,027 --> 00:14:22,405
We paid for this drug.

249
00:14:22,447 --> 00:14:25,158
We led and developed all
of the grounding patents,

250
00:14:25,199 --> 00:14:28,453
and then that patent
has been privatized,

251
00:14:28,494 --> 00:14:31,789
and as a result, people
are, are dying for no reason,

252
00:14:31,831 --> 00:14:33,750
for no reason.

253
00:14:33,791 --> 00:14:35,460
It is a
reasonable question,

254
00:14:35,501 --> 00:14:37,879
what patent
length should be.

255
00:14:37,920 --> 00:14:41,132
I'd like to have that
conversation and dialogue.

256
00:14:41,174 --> 00:14:41,841
I don't know whether it
should be one year, five years,

257
00:14:41,883 --> 00:14:44,510
17 years. I don't know.

258
00:14:44,552 --> 00:14:46,596
Let's have that debate.

259
00:14:57,190 --> 00:14:58,941
Interviewer: How
are you feeling?

260
00:14:58,983 --> 00:15:00,902
You know what? Okay. (coughs)

261
00:15:00,943 --> 00:15:04,655
Yeah, tired, exhausted,

262
00:15:08,451 --> 00:15:11,788
So, I'm hoping a little coffee

263
00:15:11,829 --> 00:15:12,663
will make me feel better.

264
00:15:12,705 --> 00:15:14,040
(inhales)

265
00:15:20,838 --> 00:15:22,465
I think that
survivor guilt

266
00:15:22,507 --> 00:15:25,551
plays a huge part in
a lot of our lives,

267
00:15:25,593 --> 00:15:27,095
and I think one of the
ways that it plays out

268
00:15:27,136 --> 00:15:29,972
is in being so willing
to do whatever it takes

269
00:15:30,014 --> 00:15:32,475
to find a cure so
that our existence

270
00:15:32,517 --> 00:15:33,601
on the planet wasn't in vain.

271
00:15:37,146 --> 00:15:37,897
How are you?

272
00:15:37,939 --> 00:15:39,023
I'm good.

273
00:15:43,694 --> 00:15:46,656
Greg approached
me to also do the trial

274
00:15:46,697 --> 00:15:49,617
and I was open
to the possibilities

275
00:15:52,620 --> 00:15:55,373
and I went in and I
said, "nah, I can't."

276
00:15:55,415 --> 00:15:56,332
Right.

277
00:15:56,374 --> 00:15:56,999
"I can't right now."

278
00:15:57,041 --> 00:15:59,043
You can't.

279
00:15:59,085 --> 00:15:59,502
Yeah, and you said yes.

280
00:15:59,544 --> 00:16:01,671
Yeah.

281
00:16:01,713 --> 00:16:02,880
There are my core
group of friends,

282
00:16:02,922 --> 00:16:03,840
there were a few of them
that were just like,

283
00:16:03,881 --> 00:16:05,842
"What are you doing?"

284
00:16:05,883 --> 00:16:09,053
"This isn't proven.
You don't look well."

285
00:16:09,095 --> 00:16:12,682
"You're really sick.
What are you thinking?"

286
00:16:12,724 --> 00:16:15,268
Jeffrey was having
night sweats.

287
00:16:15,309 --> 00:16:16,352
He was throwing up.

288
00:16:16,394 --> 00:16:18,271
He was having chills.

289
00:16:18,312 --> 00:16:20,690
He wasn't able to
get out of bed,

290
00:16:20,732 --> 00:16:23,985
and I'm thinking to myself,
"I can't do that right now,"

291
00:16:24,026 --> 00:16:26,112
and I just look
at Jeffrey again,

292
00:16:26,154 --> 00:16:28,531
and I just go, "right on baby."

293
00:16:28,573 --> 00:16:29,282
It takes a strong constitution

294
00:16:32,535 --> 00:16:33,661
and that's my best friend.

295
00:16:35,246 --> 00:16:36,873
That's how he rolls.

296
00:16:36,914 --> 00:16:41,002
(bright music)

297
00:16:41,044 --> 00:16:43,838
Obviously, companies are
going to be profit
motivated,

298
00:16:43,880 --> 00:16:47,091
but when that
intersects with public health

299
00:16:47,133 --> 00:16:49,594
and with the
welfare of individuals,

300
00:16:49,635 --> 00:16:54,223
the question becomes,
should there be mechanisms,

301
00:16:54,265 --> 00:16:57,894
whether it be the law or whether
it be legislative change

302
00:16:57,935 --> 00:17:01,439
where a pharmaceutical company
should be held accountable,

303
00:17:01,481 --> 00:17:04,901
where it makes a decision
solely based on profit,

304
00:17:04,942 --> 00:17:07,862
or is there an additional
obligation that is owed

305
00:17:07,904 --> 00:17:09,363
because it concerns public
health and individual health.

306
00:17:11,157 --> 00:17:12,742
I am not getting paid.

307
00:17:12,784 --> 00:17:14,577
It's all volunteer

308
00:17:14,619 --> 00:17:18,915
and people are
surprised by that.

309
00:17:18,956 --> 00:17:22,460
I'm four months into
this trial. I'm broke.

310
00:17:22,502 --> 00:17:24,587
I never really planned
for the future.

311
00:17:24,629 --> 00:17:26,631
because I never really thought
that I would be here.

312
00:17:41,312 --> 00:17:43,564
I was supposed to go
to DC back in February

313
00:17:43,606 --> 00:17:46,317
when my viral load
were so great,

314
00:17:46,359 --> 00:17:49,195
and then with this whole
COVID pandemic situation,

315
00:17:49,237 --> 00:17:51,864
they kept putting it off,

316
00:17:51,906 --> 00:17:56,077
but now the scientists who
came up with this vaccine

317
00:17:56,119 --> 00:17:58,121
has also been pulled into
finding a cure for COVID,

318
00:17:58,162 --> 00:18:00,623
and so I get it, but
it's like, okay,

319
00:18:00,665 --> 00:18:04,127
where do I fit into all this?

320
00:18:04,168 --> 00:18:05,378
And where, what am I doing?

321
00:18:08,423 --> 00:18:11,801
That always, I'm afraid
that all that this work

322
00:18:11,843 --> 00:18:14,637
and this whole lifestyle
change this last year

323
00:18:14,679 --> 00:18:17,473
would be affected and that
it would be discounted,

324
00:18:17,515 --> 00:18:20,893
yeah, so I would assume
that it's all in order,

325
00:18:20,935 --> 00:18:22,186
but then who knows?

326
00:18:28,192 --> 00:18:29,318
Interviewer: How
are you feeling

327
00:18:29,360 --> 00:18:30,278
about Best in Drag this year?

328
00:18:30,319 --> 00:18:32,363
Good, excited, excited.

329
00:18:32,405 --> 00:18:33,448
There's a lot going on.

330
00:18:40,246 --> 00:18:43,624
In this world of COVID,
we are rehearsing

331
00:18:43,666 --> 00:18:47,420
in a parking lot in Eagle
Rock to keep everybody safe.

332
00:18:47,462 --> 00:18:49,172
And it's about producing
an opening number

333
00:18:49,213 --> 00:18:52,008
that is social distancing.

334
00:18:52,050 --> 00:18:53,760
We won't be dancing
on top of each other.

335
00:18:53,801 --> 00:18:58,806
I noticed my concentration
is a little off

336
00:18:58,848 --> 00:19:01,392
with all of it because it's
so hard to think sometimes

337
00:19:01,434 --> 00:19:05,521
in this Groundhog's Day
of COVID right now,

338
00:19:05,563 --> 00:19:08,316
I'm just grateful that I'm
physically able to do what I do,

339
00:19:08,357 --> 00:19:10,818
and I can ask for
help if I need it.

340
00:19:19,410 --> 00:19:22,371
The people that are so
affected by this disease

341
00:19:22,413 --> 00:19:24,499
are the ones that, you know,

342
00:19:24,540 --> 00:19:27,543
can't afford medication
or can't get medication,

343
00:19:27,585 --> 00:19:29,545
and typically tend
to be minorities.

344
00:19:29,587 --> 00:19:31,255
They tend to be poor.

345
00:19:31,297 --> 00:19:32,715
They tend to be homeless,

346
00:19:32,757 --> 00:19:35,510
and these are members of society

347
00:19:35,551 --> 00:19:38,679
that the majority of
society wants to overlook,

348
00:19:38,721 --> 00:19:42,642
and when you've got a medication
that some wealthier people

349
00:19:42,683 --> 00:19:45,228
can afford, it's hard
to put a spotlight

350
00:19:45,269 --> 00:19:48,398
on the ones that
actually need it,

351
00:19:48,439 --> 00:19:49,357
and that are suffering
from this disease.

352
00:19:50,274 --> 00:19:52,026
(intense music)

353
00:20:09,669 --> 00:20:11,462
I think about the early
days, the eighties,

354
00:20:11,504 --> 00:20:14,424
the nine, you know,
a PLA dance-a-thon,

355
00:20:14,465 --> 00:20:16,342
the Paws benefit, pets
are wonderful support,

356
00:20:16,384 --> 00:20:19,929
and even the Commitment to Life,

357
00:20:19,971 --> 00:20:23,057
or they'd honor Barbara
Streisand or Elizabeth Taylor

358
00:20:23,099 --> 00:20:25,601
and then charge a
gazillion dollars to go,

359
00:20:25,643 --> 00:20:27,603
and none of that's
happening anymore.

360
00:20:27,645 --> 00:20:30,565
It went from being
very high visibility

361
00:20:32,734 --> 00:20:35,445
and lots of press stuff
to you never know

362
00:20:35,486 --> 00:20:38,448
if it's going to make it
with the AP or anything.

363
00:20:38,489 --> 00:20:43,035
Other diseases that
have taken over,

364
00:20:43,077 --> 00:20:44,620
you know, more important.

365
00:20:48,916 --> 00:20:52,086
People's lives are
not commodities.

366
00:20:52,128 --> 00:20:56,132
You can say, "how much
is this phone worth to you?"

367
00:20:56,174 --> 00:20:58,885
and you can say, "a
hundred dollars, two hundred
dollars."

368
00:20:58,926 --> 00:21:02,138
You can buy a Nokia phone.
You can not have a phone at all,

369
00:21:02,180 --> 00:21:04,057
but you cannot ask the question,

370
00:21:04,098 --> 00:21:06,142
"How much will you
pay to be alive?"

371
00:21:06,184 --> 00:21:08,728
"How much will you pay to live?"

372
00:21:08,770 --> 00:21:10,480
because the answer
is "everything."

373
00:21:10,521 --> 00:21:12,148
You will pay $10,

374
00:21:12,190 --> 00:21:12,982
you'll pay a thousand dollars.

375
00:21:13,024 --> 00:21:14,650
You will go into debt,

376
00:21:14,692 --> 00:21:16,986
you will do anything to live,

377
00:21:17,028 --> 00:21:20,031
and that is what makes
the price of medicine

378
00:21:20,073 --> 00:21:20,698
different than the
price of an iPhone.

379
00:21:24,494 --> 00:21:28,164
Announcer: Miss Nevada,
Lotta Slots!

380
00:21:28,206 --> 00:21:30,666
We have the scientific
tools to end this HIV
epidemic,

381
00:21:30,708 --> 00:21:31,793
and we are fortunate that
pharma has developed

382
00:21:31,834 --> 00:21:34,670
these drugs to get us there.

383
00:21:34,712 --> 00:21:37,590
They have already
profited enormously.

384
00:21:37,632 --> 00:21:40,259
Now, in the spirit
of saving lives,

385
00:21:40,301 --> 00:21:43,846
I simply ask that these
drugs be reasonably priced

386
00:21:43,888 --> 00:21:45,640
so that those most
marginalized and at risk

387
00:21:45,681 --> 00:21:48,434
can reap their benefit.

388
00:21:48,476 --> 00:21:50,144
I hope that some
of these companies,

389
00:21:50,186 --> 00:21:54,565
including Gilead will begin
to do the right thing.

390
00:21:54,607 --> 00:21:55,733
It's never too late
for that. Thank you.

391
00:22:02,782 --> 00:22:03,533
You ready to do this?

392
00:22:03,574 --> 00:22:05,827
Yes.

393
00:22:05,868 --> 00:22:06,619
Interviewer: Today's
the final day.

394
00:22:06,661 --> 00:22:10,957
Hopefully, hopefully.

395
00:22:10,998 --> 00:22:12,875
Interviewer: How long do you
think you'll be here?

396
00:22:12,917 --> 00:22:14,252
Think I'm here for a
couple hours. I know that.

397
00:22:14,293 --> 00:22:15,795
That's what they told me. So--

398
00:22:15,837 --> 00:22:17,630
Interviewer: Are
you nervous?

399
00:22:17,672 --> 00:22:19,424
I'm nervous, I'm
anxious, I'm irritated.

400
00:22:19,465 --> 00:22:21,801
I just want to get this done.

401
00:22:21,843 --> 00:22:24,595
I've been reflecting a
lot on the last year

402
00:22:24,637 --> 00:22:27,640
and this commitment
and what am I doing

403
00:22:27,682 --> 00:22:29,267
and why am I doing this,

404
00:22:29,308 --> 00:22:31,728
and getting back to my life

405
00:22:31,769 --> 00:22:34,105
and remember that I've been

406
00:22:34,147 --> 00:22:36,733
going through this process
through a pandemic,

407
00:22:36,774 --> 00:22:38,568
so it has to, I have to
surrender, you know,

408
00:22:42,905 --> 00:22:45,783
my character defect
of lack of patience.

409
00:22:49,287 --> 00:22:50,872
That's, I'm feeling a
little bratty today,

410
00:22:50,913 --> 00:22:55,168
so that's what
anyone can (laughs)

411
00:22:55,209 --> 00:22:58,504
This is my acting shirt (laughs)

412
00:22:58,546 --> 00:22:59,547
I'm feeling like
a warrior today.

413
00:22:59,589 --> 00:23:01,549
Interviewer: Yeah.

414
00:23:01,591 --> 00:23:02,759
I don't want to cuss
anybody out though.

415
00:23:02,800 --> 00:23:04,802
(Interviewer laughs)

416
00:23:06,512 --> 00:23:08,473
(hopeful music)

417
00:23:19,901 --> 00:23:22,779
With this whole blood
work that I did today,

418
00:23:22,820 --> 00:23:24,989
That's new
information, you know,

419
00:23:25,031 --> 00:23:26,282
we'll see, is this another
year of a commitment

420
00:23:26,324 --> 00:23:27,784
or am I done?

421
00:23:30,203 --> 00:23:34,540
Nobody's mentioned it to
me or told me, thank you.

422
00:23:34,582 --> 00:23:36,250
Thank you for your
service (laughs).

423
00:23:37,877 --> 00:23:39,962
Here's that fruit basket, you
know, nothing like that,

424
00:23:40,004 --> 00:23:41,047
so I never, it's stressful,

425
00:23:42,799 --> 00:23:46,469
and it always concerns me that,

426
00:23:46,511 --> 00:23:49,639
what if this whole situation
that I've been involved with

427
00:23:49,680 --> 00:23:52,558
for the last year and a
half is them selling it

428
00:23:55,186 --> 00:23:59,023
to some conglomerate
or big pharma,

429
00:23:59,065 --> 00:24:01,859
and by my volunteering
my time, and my body,

430
00:24:03,694 --> 00:24:07,907
and everything this last year,

431
00:24:07,949 --> 00:24:10,118
and then they benefited the
billions and I don't know what

432
00:24:12,036 --> 00:24:13,287
it all means anymore, I don't.

433
00:24:16,374 --> 00:24:19,335
Being involved with this trial

434
00:24:19,377 --> 00:24:20,586
has made me even more baffled
by the whole process.

435
00:24:34,726 --> 00:24:40,398
* 86,400 seconds in a day *

436
00:24:40,440 --> 00:24:45,236
* I swear lately, most of
them have been a waste *

437
00:24:45,278 --> 00:24:50,283
* I feel them come and
go, bury my mistakes. *

438
00:24:50,324 --> 00:24:53,828
* But time just goes
on and on in a way *

439
00:24:53,870 --> 00:24:59,125
* if I had one day
left to live, *

440
00:24:59,167 --> 00:25:03,963
* And if the stars went
out on me, the truth is *

441
00:25:04,005 --> 00:25:06,716
* Yeah, There's so
much I'd say and do *

442
00:25:09,302 --> 00:25:14,057
* If I nothing lose,
nah, nothing to lose *

443
00:25:14,098 --> 00:25:16,559
* Oh, I'd call my mother
and tell her I'm sorry *

444
00:25:16,601 --> 00:25:18,895
* And never call her back *

445
00:25:18,936 --> 00:25:21,397
* I'd pour my heart and
soul out into a letter *

446
00:25:21,439 --> 00:25:24,567
* And send it to my dad *

447
00:25:24,609 --> 00:25:28,905
* Like, oh my god, the time
I've wasted lost in my head, *

448
00:25:28,946 --> 00:25:31,449
* Let me leave this world
with the hate behind me *

449
00:25:31,491 --> 00:25:33,409
* And take the love instead *

450
00:25:33,451 --> 00:25:37,747
* Give me only love, only love *

451
00:25:37,789 --> 00:25:41,125
* Give me only love, only love *

452
00:25:43,086 --> 00:25:48,591
* Give me only love, only love *

453
00:25:48,633 --> 00:25:51,427
* Let me leave this world
with the hate behind me *

454
00:25:51,469 --> 00:25:53,388
* And take the love instead *

455
00:25:53,429 --> 00:25:56,057
* Give me only love,
only love, only love *

456
00:25:58,518 --> 00:26:02,897
* Give me only love, only love *

457
00:26:02,939 --> 00:26:05,858
* Only love, only
love, only love *

458
00:26:08,569 --> 00:26:10,446
* Let me leave this world
with the hate behind me *

459
00:26:10,488 --> 00:26:13,408
* Only the love instead *

460
00:26:13,449 --> 00:26:15,451
* Let me leave this world
with the hate behind me *

461
00:26:15,493 --> 00:26:17,453
* And take the love instead *

462
00:26:17,495 --> 00:26:19,831
* Give me only love, only love *