China Begins Giving Free H.I.V./AIDS Drugs to the Poor
Posted by Greg Stone at November 8, 2003 12:14 AM | TrackBackChina Begins Giving Free H.I.V./AIDS Drugs to the Poor
By JIM YARDLEYPublished: November 8, 2003
BEIJING, Nov. 7 — The Chinese government has started providing free treatment for poor people with H.I.V. and AIDS and plans to expand the program next year until every poor person who has tested positive is receiving medical help, a top Health Ministry official said in a speech this week.
AdvertisementThe speech on Thursday by Gao Qiang, the executive deputy health minister, confirmed anecdotal reports from AIDS sufferers in central China, who say health workers began handing out free anti-retroviral drugs several months ago in Henan Province, a region ravaged by AIDS.
Mr. Gao's speech, released by the official New China News Agency, was hailed by Chinese and Western AIDS workers as a significant step for a country that has come under intense criticism for its earlier handling of the disease. Even so, AIDS activists warned that China must do far more than give out medicine, and H.I.V.-positive patients in Henan cautioned that problems were already arising with the free drug program.