It has now been over a month since the Copenhagen Consensus concluded that AIDS should be at the top of the world's list in prioritizing development resources. Interestingly, there has been very little discussion of this stunning result within the AIDS community itself. I heard no mention of it in dozens of meetings in Bangkok last week. I find scant mention of it on Web sites for UNAIDS, the Global Fund, or WHO. I haven't yet heard anyone talk about doing a similar initiative focusing on AIDS.

Doesn't it make sense to do an "AIDS Consensus" exercise to recommend how the notional $27 billion for AIDS should be spent? There are two dozen principal interventions for AIDS, a half dozen key epidemiologic regions -- where should we put resources? Would it be possible to find scholars to write a couple dozen key cost-benefit analyses to be judged by a neutral, credible panel? It's impossible to answer resource allocation questions with precision, but certainly we can do better than we are doing now (trusting fate?).