Govt Taking Steps To Control Spread Of AIDS: NA Told

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 10th Jul, 2020 ) :Parliamentary Secretary for Health Nousheen Hamid Friday said the government was taking numerous steps to control spread of AIDS disease in the country.

Speaking in the house while responding to a calling attention notice of a group of legislators, Nousheen said AIDS programme was started in the country in 1987.

The AIDS programme was undertaken with foreign and domestic funding, however, for some years now there was no domestic funding, she added.

She said general population was affected because of unsafe use of syringes, improper disposal of hospital waste and unsafe blood transfusion.

She said there were 183000 AIDS patients in the country but because of the stigma attached to the disease only 25000 were registered.

It was difficult to reach the stigmatised patients, she added.

Marriyum Aurangzeb said there was a parliamentary committee on the National AIDS control programme which should be activated.

Nousheen said AIDS had increased by 57 percent in Pakistan and Philippines, adding in the global fund $ 34.9 million was given to Pakistan during the years 2018-2020.

While $ 71 million Dollars were given for period of 2021-2023, she added.

She said the government was also giving a matching grant for the programme.

She said 45 centers were working all across Pakistan for treatment of drug addicts.

She said there was no transmission of AIDS from mother to child in Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) in Islamabad.

Drug rehabilitation centers were established in the private sector, she added. Nousheen said under public private partnership, steps were being taken to increase testing capacity.

Shaista Pervaiz said drug addicts were increasing in the country and the government should take some remedial measures.