New HIV cases down to under 11,000 this year
By Pongphon Sarnsamak
The Nation
25-11-2010
More than a million Thais had caught HIV since the first case was reported in 1984 and two thirds of these - some 644,128 people - had died of Aids, the Public Health Ministry revealed yesterday.
This year there have been 10,853 new infections among adults and children. Gay men remain the group most affected by HIV, officials said.
In a bid to curb the spread of HIV throughout the country, the Health Ministry has teamed up with the private sector to launch a massive campaign with the slogan "Light for Rights" to raise public awareness about the rights of people living with HIV.
Minister Jurin Laksanawisit said the ministry expected to halve infection rates next year. The ministry also will extend medical treatment to cover all people living with HIV.
The ministry set a goal that 80 per cent of patients with HIV and their families should get access to government social welfare without discrimination.
To date, about 60 million around the world have HIV, and 25 million of these have died.
In Thailand, 1,161,244 people are recorded as having caught HIV with just over half of them having died (644,128).
Of the 10,853 diagnosed with HIV this year, most are men who have sex with men (33 per cent), followed by housewives infected by their husbands (28 per cent).
The government healthcare scheme provides drugs and medical treatment to 214,661 people living with HIV who registered with the National Health Security Office and 80,000 people with HIV under the Social Security Fund. It also provides healthcare to about 2,700 migrant workers.
The Thai Red Cross' Aids research centre director Dr Praphan Panuphak said the rate of new infections had decreased from20,000 cases in several past years to 10,000 cases this year as most people with HIV have been able to access anti-retroviral drugs at an early stage of disease, which cuts the chances of the disease being spread to others.