AHF Urges G8 Countries To Ante Up For Global AIDS Fight
"There are 40 million people worldwide living with HIV/AIDS today, yet less than 2 million have access to lifesaving anti-retroviral treatment," noted Michael Weinstein, President of AIDS Healthcare Foundation. "And despite the fact that there has been an increased effort over the past few years to try and scale up treatment globally, funding for worldwide treatment still remains grossly inadequate. The official agenda for this year's 'Group of Eight' summit includes only three items: global energy security, education, and fighting infectious diseases -- of which AIDS should be the number one priority. We urge all G8 members to increase greatly their funding and support for the global battle against HIV/AIDS."
Advocates from AHF also are calling for a more accurate and consistent reporting system for the numbers of people on treatment through global treatment and funding programs such as PEPFAR and the Global Fund. Discrepancies in the actual numbers of those on lifesaving anti-retroviral treatment undermine the urgency of the global AIDS fight and lull people into believing that the problem of AIDS treatment worldwide is being adequately addressed. As a case in point, the latest figures from PEPFAR claim 561,000 people worldwide on treatment via PEPFAR-funded programs; the Global Fund claims 541,000 on treatment through its own programs (New York Times, July 5, 2006, Donald G. McNeill, Jr.). However, AHF and other AIDS advocates note that there is extensive overlap between the numbers of the two programs -- each often claiming the same client or patient as treated by their respective program.
"We found there was double counting of more than 184,000 people between these two programs in earlier program progress reports on their treatment numbers," added AHF's Weinstein. "This number has no doubt increased as the Global Fund and PEPFAR now together report more than one million people in treatment. It really does a disservice to the good work these bodies have done so far to not have honest and accurate treatment numbers, and it undermines prudent and strategic public health planning globally."
While global energy security and education are also on the G8 agenda, Weinstein noted, "With regard to fighting infectious diseases, it's high time for the G8 to really put it money where its mouth is and ante up more funding for AIDS treatment. The money spent on global health is dwarfed by that spent on wars and national security."
AIDS Healthcare Foundation
http://www.aidshealth.org/
AHF îndeamnã þãrilor G8 Pentru a Ante Global pentru Combaterea SIDA - AHF Urges G8 Countries To Ante Up For Global AIDS Fight - articole medicale engleza - startsanatate