All section Close
Image Credits: Wikipedia
Life-Saving HIV Drugs Risk Shortage As COVID-19 Disrupts Supplies: WHO
Writer: Navya Singh
Navya writes and speaks about matters that often do not come out or doesn’t see daylight. Defense and economy of the country is of special interest to her and a lot of her content revolves around that.
India, 8 July 2020 4:10 AM GMT | Updated 28 July 2020 8:36 AM GMT
Editor : Prateek Gautam |
A free soul who believes that journalism, apart from politics, should stand for social cause and the environment.
Creatives : Abhishek M
" An engineer by profession, Abhishek is the creative producer of the team, graphic designing is his passion and travelling his get away. In more ways than one, he makes the content visually appealing."
The WHO has issued guidance on maintaining equal access to essential health services, such as HIV treatment and testing clinics, during the COVID-19
The World Health Organisation in a report released on July 6 said that over a third of the world's nations are at risk of running out of life-saving AIDS drugs because of disturbance in supply lines caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Twenty-four out of those 73 nations have already reported critically low supplies of the vital antiretroviral drugs," the report mentioned.
WHO's director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus termed the findings of the survey as "deeply concerning".
"We cannot let the COVID-19 pandemic undo the hard-won gains in the global response to this disease," he said.
The WHO said that nearly 8.3 million HIV-positive people are dependent on the antiretroviral drugs in the 24 worst-hit states , which constitutes nearly one-third of the total number of people taking HIV treatment globally.
While there is no cure for AIDS, drugs known as antiretrovirals (ARVs) can curb the virus and prevent HIV-positive people from transmitting it to others.
Over 38 million people worldwide are currently infected with HIV. The survey found that during the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak, a failure of suppliers to deliver ARVs on time, combined with restrictions on land and air transport and limited access to health services, have caused major disruptions to drug supplies.
The WHO has issued guidance on maintaining equal access to essential health services, such as HIV treatment and testing clinics, during the COVID-19. It says health authorities should consider "multi-month dispensing" for AIDS drugs, a policy whereby medicines are prescribed for up to six months.
Also Read: Failures Of AIDS Fight Show Need For 'Fair' COVID Response: UNAIDS Chief
Must Reads
We are an independent and public-spirited digital media platform for Indian millennials. We report news and issues that matter as well as give you the opportunity to take action.
