Linda Laubenstein | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | May 21, 1947 Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Died | August 15, 1992 (aged 45) Chatham, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Education | |
| Medical career | |
| Profession | Physician |
| Field | |
| Institutions | New York University Medical Center |
| Sub-specialties | HIV/AIDS |
| Research | Kaposi's sarcoma |
Linda Jane Laubenstein (May 21, 1947 – August 15, 1992) was an American physician and early HIV/AIDS researcher. She was among the first doctors in the United States to recognize the AIDS epidemic of the early 1980s; she co-authored the first article linking AIDS with Kaposi's sarcoma.
Laubenstein was raised in Barrington, Rhode Island, where a childhood bout of polio left her paraplegic and using a wheelchair for the rest of her life. She graduated from Barnard College in 1969 and received her medical degree from New York University School of Medicine, where she specialized in hematology and oncology. She went on to become a clinical professor before leaving to focus on treating AIDS patients in her private practice. In addition to her medical work, she was an outspoken AIDS activist and co-founded a non-profit organization, Multitasking, which provided employment to people with AIDS.
After Laubenstein's death in 1992, aged 45, the New York State Department of Health established an award named after her for HIV/AIDS physicians. She was also memorialized in Larry Kramer's play The Normal Heart and its subsequent film adaptation.