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Friday, September 02, 2005
RP fares best vs. HIV-Aids
Three congressmen revealed yesterday that the Philippines has the least number of HIV-Aids cases among Asian countries.
But Health Secretary Francisco Duque believes the figure is just the tip of the iceberg. The real statistics is “hidden and growing,” he said.
“Speculations even have it that the ballpark figure of HIV cases in the country would reach 10,000,” Duque said. But he explained that there is no real survey to back it.
As of July this year, the official count of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) cases in the country is pegged at 19, four of which are acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (Aids) cases already.
The total figure among countries is 2,314 cases since 1984. Of this, 1,626 or 70 percent are asymptomatic (HIV cases) while 688 are Aids.
Of the victims in the Philippines, 16 are males while three are females with the median age of 32.
Rep. Janet Guarin (Iloilo, 1st district) said the figure may only be much less than one percent of the population, but this is not a guarantee that the Philippines can be complacent in the fight against the disease.
Not reflective
“While we have the lowest figure in Asia, we are also among the countries with a low rate of HIV testing, which means that the less than 1 percent figure is not reflective of the reported low rate in the Philippines,” Guarin said.
This prompted Rep. Nerissa Soon-Ruiz (Cebu, 6th district) to suggest that the Aids law (RA 8504) needs to be amended.
“Maybe we should have mandatory testing rather than a voluntary one. Mandatory testing will really prevent spreading the virus around,” she said.
Soon-Ruiz revealed that initial proposals of the Aids law used to include compulsory HIV testing, but was blocked by human rights advocates.
Akbayan Rep. Mario Aguja was also not impressed with the figure: “The best deal is still zero incidence.”
P20M
As for the health department, Duque said he allocated P20 million in the budget for retroviral drugs to ease the HIV disease.
An initial budget of P1 million was allocated for the purchase of condoms as a protective mechanism against AIDS.
Ruiz said she is tired of fighting with the Church on issues regarding condoms. She clarified that the items will not be available in barangay health centers for people to avail themselves of, but will be distributed to high-risk groups such as OFWs and commercial sex workers.
Of the over 2,000 HIV cases, 775 or 34 percent are OFWs. Thirty-six percent of them are seafarers, 16 percent are domestic helpers and 9 percent are employees.
Health workers also comprise seven percent of the HIV cases, while entertainers make up six percent.
Ruiz, Guarin, Aguja and Duque were among those who attended the first public hearing of the proposed amendment to the AIDS law held yesterday at the Mango Park Hotel.
The hearing will be continued today. (JGA)
(September 2, 2005 issue)
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