Private ARVs too expensive; PLWH

Private ARVs too expensive; PLWH

BY GEORGE KAGAME

People Living with HIV/Aids-PLWH-are not happy with the high cost of Anti Retroviral drugs on the private market as Rwanda joins the world to celebrate great achievements in the fight against HIV/Aids. "It costs too high for me, and sometimes i need supplements on the free dose provided by government" said Giles Rubaara, a PLWH in Kigali on 1 December, as the world celebrated the United Nations' day to observe and raise awareness to HIV/Aids.


Rubaara, a resident of Gikondo said that he would prefer to purchase the ARVs supplied on the private market instead of the freely offered ARVs by government in public health centres. He has been living with HIV/Aids for the past six years.

Speaking to the press on Monday, Fulgence Kamari the Communications Officer of the National Commission for the Prevention of HIV/Aids-CNLS said government established 345 health centres across the country in which free ARVs are given public health centres spread across the country, he said that for all Rwandans that have tested positive for HIV, the treatment is free and added that so far only 42 percent of the population in the country have tested for HIV. He added that some people opt for the original ARVs and, "it should be noted that there are enough ARVs given free of charge for Rwandans that come forward to test."

The government through the Aids Research and Treatment Centre-TRAC and funding from Global Fund and US President's emergency plan to prevent Aids provide free ARVs to people that test positive for HIV the virus that causes Aids. However the ARVs supplied by government are World Health Organization recommended duplicates of original ARVs. The originals are too expensive to be offered for free and so they are sold on the private market at Frw 400,000 per year, a price many victims of Aids find too high to afford. Most expenditure on Aids in the country goes to the purchase of ARVs and other medicines for PLWH, Kamari said.

Kamari said that Rwanda had not organized any special ceremonies to commemorate the 2008 world Aids day saying that CNLS had already events earlier to mark the day. "three years ago we adopted a programme whereby we hold our world Aids day on the last saturday of the month of November when all the people are participating in the mandatory public service works-Umuganda. Here we have a chance to to sensitize people about HIV and encourage them to come forward for voluntary testing and counseling."

Commenting on the significance of World Aids day, World Bank Senior Health Specialist Miriam Schneidman said that in Rwanda there has been a “massive increase in the number of people that have come to be tested, and as access to AIDS treatment has scaled up people have become more accepting of those living with AIDS,” While access to antiretroviral treatment has improved markedly, now reaching about 30 percent of those who need it." She however added there was more effort needed to increase ARV supply to all the people that need it. Schneidman said that to celebrate the 2008 many events have been organized to highlight the importance of the fight these include the International Conference on AIDS and STIs in Africa, taking place in Senegal, December 3-7.

The World Bank through its Multi Country Approach programme-MAP and US international Aid Development agency-USAID are among the leading financiers of the fight against HIV/Aids.