The Standard Media : reported that Kenya: Government to roll out anti-retroviral drug to HIV negative people

| Updated Mon, March 13th 2017 at 15:02 GMT +3Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) drug to be used by HIV negative people. (Photo: Courtesy)The Government has rolled out a drug that will be taken daily by HIV negative people who are mostly at risk of HIV infection. "We are rolling out this programme based on evidence we collected from our very encouraging project in Thika called Partners Prevention Programme," Sirengo said. The roll out is expected to allow Kenyans who require anti-retroviral medicines (ART) to access them to prevent themselves from the risk of acquiring HIV. According to Dr. Martin Sirengo, the head of National AIDS & STI Control Programme (NASCOP) said PrEP is an anti-retroviral drug taken daily by HIV negative people most at risk of HIV infection to reduce their chances of becoming infected.

Govt to roll out drug that protects people from contracting HIV

PHOTO | FILEThe government will next month roll out a new drug meant to protect HIV-negative people from contracting the virus. Following research and demonstration projects which showed that the drug reduces the risk of HIV infection with up to 96 per cent, the drug was incorporated into the country's HIV prevention roadmap as the most recent strategic framework. Speaking while announcing the roll-out, ‎head, National AIDS and STI Control Program (Nascop) Dr Martin Sirengo said that the drug has been included in the current HIV prevention methods. Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) means the drug is taken before exposure to risk of infection. The drug, known as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), will be given to those at high risk of contracting the virus before being made accessible to the rest of the country.

Trumpcare could make access to this lifesaving HIV drug even more difficult

The proposed plan would complicate PrEP access, particularly for low-income Americans in the 31 states, plus the District of Columbia, that adopted the Medicaid expansion. The new bill would begin phasing out federal money for the expansion in 2020, likely blocking new applicants and access to meds like PrEP. In what could amount to a significant setback in the fight against HIV, Trumpcare could soon make PrEP—a once-a-day preventative drug that is seeing a rise in use among men who have sex with men due to its nearly 99 percent effectiveness rate against the virus—unaffordable. Republicans are always about that pro-life stance—unless you happen to be lower-income or LGBTQ, apparently:House Republicans released a long-awaited blueprint to replace the ACA on Monday, confirming plans to eliminate Medicaid expansion and other key Obamacare features. The drug is expensive, costing up to $1,500 a month without insurance, and anywhere from free to $500 with insurance, but those costs are vastly cheaper compared to a lifetime of HIV treatment and care.


collected by :Lucy William
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