Govt to make anti-retroviral drugs free to all HIV/AIDS patients

Government is moving to make anti-retroviral treatment available free of charge for all HIV/AIDS patients, a release from the office of the Prime Minister stated.

The Government, it added “was moving with determination” to have the National HIV/AIDS Strategic Plan fully implemented. In a message to commemorate World AIDS Day, Prime Minister Patrick Manning also promised that the Government would do what is necessary to ensure that persons living with the disease would not suffer human rights abuses by employers or others in authority. He said that apart from the fact that the natural response to persons who are ill should be one of compassion and support, the government was convinced that stigma and discrimination made it harder to reduce the incidence of the disease.

“Not only will persons who should come forward for treatment be reluctant to reveal their status, but we run the risk of fostering a high degree of bitterness among the persons living with the disease,” he stated. He added that the National HIV/AIDS Strategic Plan identifies the reduction in stigma and discrimination against people living with HIV/AIDS as one of the key objectives in the response to the epidemic. Manning acknowledged “with some degree of sadness” the recent comment of the UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, that the world was losing the battle against the dreaded disease. The Prime Minister said that for the Caribbean, this was very bad news “because we are small populations, but now live with the second highest adult prevalence of HIV/AIDS in the entire world.”

Manning stated that the terrible impact of the disease on families, on communities and the economy in the Caribbean was compounded by the discrimination experienced by persons living with HIV/AIDS. The Prime Minister stressed that Government was aware that without the cooperation and support of the population at large, none of its efforts would succeed. “As a country we have to see the wisdom of changing how we behave as Trinidadians and Tobagonians, and the wisdom of treating our fellow citizens who have contracted the disease with the dignity, respect and fairness they deserve. “The ball is in our court. It is for us to defend ourselves against HIV/AIDS by making the right sexual choices,” he stated.

Pledging that there would be no “second-class citizens” in this country, Manning gave the undertaking to ensure that these persons continue to enjoy their full status as citizens of this country. He encouraged all citizens to take a similar stance. “Let us make sure that by the next time the next World AIDS Day comes around, we will all be more involved in bringing an end to the epidemic itself and most certainly, we will have all taken a stand against stigma and discrimination towards persons living with HIV/AIDS,” Manning said.