In 1988, The Center for AIDS Research at Albert Einstein Cancer Center was funded by the NIH. Researchers at the Center were the first to identify pediatric AIDS as a distinct disease and established the first day-care center in the world for children with AIDS. The NIH-funded CFAR program emphasizes the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration, especially between basic and clinical investigators, translational research

Today, The Einstein-Rockefeller-CUNY Center for AIDS Research (ERC-CFAR) is one of 19 NIH-funded Centers for AIDS Research (CFAR).