Ambassador Birx says next three months are critical to analyze damage caused by COVID-19

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Ambassador Deborah Birx sat down with ABC7's Karl Schmid as part of AIDS2020 Virtual Daily to talk about the effects of the coronavirus pandemic and the impact on not only those living with HIV, but the programs that ensure AIDS research and funding remain in tact during this current pandemic.

"We really think the next three months are critical to analyse the damage that has been done to the HIV, TB and malaria programs," said Birx.

A concern has been that funding and resources have been taken away from HIV / AIDS to help combat the current global pandemic.

During its final day, AIDS2020 Virtual shifted focus away from HIV / AIDS and on to COVID-19. Ambassador Birx will be joined by National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) Director Anthony Fauci, who will also speak at the COVID-19 Conference. Other conference speakers will include Bill Gates, Jane Goodall, World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, US Coronavirus Task Force Coordinator Deborah Birx and Professor Salim Abdool Karim of the Centre for the AIDS Programme of Research in South Africa (CAPRISA).

Watch the video above for the full interview between Karl Schmid and Ambassador Birx.