Home > News > China >

Plan to aid foreigners with HIV
By:China Daily
update:December 03,2018
\

Dec. 3, 2018 -- Medical workers and volunteers hand out brochures about HIV prevention to college students at the Daming Palace National Heritage Park in Xi'an, Shaanxi province, on Saturday, World AIDS Day. [Photo by Yuan Jingzhi/China Daily]
 
Yunnan province considers offering free treatment to long-term residents
 
Dec. 3, 2018 -- Southwest China's Yunnan province is considering providing free treatment to some foreign residents with HIV/AIDS, a top Chinese epidemiologist said.
 
The province is planning to revise its regulations on HIV control and prevention so that foreigners with HIV/AIDS who have lived in Yunnan for a certain period of time and intend to continue living in China for a long time, such as those who have established families with Chinese, will get free treatment, according to Wu Zunyou, chief epidemiologist at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
 
"The amendment is still under review by authorities. Once in effect, it will help both foreigners and Chinese against the epidemic," he said ahead of World AIDS Day on Saturday.
 
Most HIV-positive foreigners in China live in areas along the country's borders with Myanmar and Vietnam, including Yunnan. The number living in China has been increasing since 2010 due to more frequent cross-border exchanges, according to the health authorities.
 
"Most foreigners with HIV in Yunnan have already set up families with Chinese," Wu said. "Providing free treatment to them can also protect local Chinese."
 
An official with the Yunnan Health Commission, who declined to be named, confirmed the regulation is being revised but did not give details.
 
The revised regulation is unlikely to provide free treatment to all HIV-positive foreigners in Yunnan, the official said, citing concerns that large numbers of foreigners with HIV might cross the border for free treatment.
 
"How could we deal with it then?" the official added.
 
The National Health Commission says all Chinese people living with HIV/AIDS have access to free antiviral treatment.
 
There were 2,154 HIV-positive foreigners reported to be living in China last year, compared with 660 in 2010, Han Mengjie, head of the National Center for AIDS/STD Control and Prevention, told a news conference last month.
  • Kindergartens galore come to Tibet
  • Xi extends festive greetings to children across China
  • View of Mount Qungmknag in Nyemo County of Lhasa, Tibet

E-mail:editor@tibetol.cn |About Us|Contact Us |Site Maps|
Address:3/F, C Tower, RECREO International Centre, 8 Wangjing East Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100102, PRC
Tel:13651236230
Copyright by China Intercontinental Communication Co., Ltd All Rights Reserved.