HIV-positive children will get free drugs

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HIV-positive children will get free drugs: Sushma makes a promise

which will cost ministry thrice its budget

TOUFIQ RASHID

NEW DELHI, OCTOBER 4: The Government is embarking on an ambitious

project to provide anti-retroviral drugs to HIV-positive children

below 14 years of age free of cost. This will enhance their life and

help them fight the virus for a long time.

As the non-availability and high cost of the medicines (Rs 5,000 per

month) are said to be the major gap in the AIDS control programme in

the country, the Government is touting it as a major step forward.

The initiative will be included in the next phase of the National

Aids Control Organisation (NACO) programme and is likely to start in

three-to-six months' time.

It's a huge commitment. Out of the estimated 3.9 to 4.5 million HIV-

positive cases in India, around 2 lakh are believed to be children.

And even if half of them need anti-retroviral drugs, the annual

spending will be Rs 600 crore. Though the total annual budget of the

Health Ministry is just Rs 225 crore, it expects Rs 500 crore global

funding and another $100 million from the Bill and Melinda Gates

Foundation.

Anti-retroviral drug is the only way an HIV-positive person can live

longer. ``But most die due to non-availability of the drugs and our

major concern is the increasing number of children who contract the

illness from their parents. Most of them are orphans or have both

parents affected with the virus, so this group was given priority,''

says Sushma Swaraj, Health and Family Welfare Minister.

Though the Government has no estimates of the budget or the number of

people to be covered, it plans to issue a mass appeal for voluntary

registration as a first step. ``If we hold a survey to estimate the

number, it might or might not be conclusive. However, the fact that

the medicines would be available for free will help people declare

their HIV status to the concerned authorities,'' the minister says.

According to experts, being HIV-positive doesn't mean that a person

is eligible for the anti-retroviral drugs. ``A person is given the

drugs only when the immunity drops and CD count is below 200,'' says

a NACO official. The state AIDS control organisations have been asked

to identify hospitals where the registration can be done.

The minister is meeting the pharma companies next week to discuss the

reduction of prices for anti-retroviral drugs in view of the bulk

purchase.

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