Abstract
IntroductionSouth Africa has the largest HIV/AIDS epidemic of any country in the world.Case descriptionNational antiretroviral therapy (ART) policy is examined over the period of 1999 to 2008, which coincided with the government of President Thabo Mbeki and his Minister of Health, Dr Manto Tshabalala-Msimang. The movement towards a national ART programme in South Africa was an ambitious undertaking, the likes of which had not been contemplated before in public health in Africa.Discussion and evaluationOne million AIDS-ill individuals were targeted to be enrolled in the ART programme by 2007/08. Fewer than 50% of eligible individuals were enrolled. This failure resulted from lack of political commitment and inadequate public health system capacity. The human and economic costs of this failure are large and sobering.ConclusionsThe total lost benefits of ART not reaching the people who need it are estimated at 3.8 million life years for the period, 2000 to 2005. The economic cost of those lost life years over this period has been estimated at more than US$15 billion.
Highlights
South Africa has the largest HIV/AIDS epidemic of any country in the world.Case description: National antiretroviral therapy (ART) policy is examined over the period of 1999 to 2008, which coincided with the government of President Thabo Mbeki and his Minister of Health, Dr Manto Tshabalala-Msimang
The total lost benefits of ART not reaching the people who need it are estimated at 3.8 million life years for the period, 2000 to 2005
In 2008, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) estimated that South Africa has the highest number of HIV-positive individuals in the world, with the number of people living with HIV totalling 5,700,000 (CI: 4.9 million-6.6 million)
Summary
Available resources to achieve policy targets The resources available over the period, 2000-2008, came from two sources: internal and external. The World Health Organization's and UNAIDS' midpoint estimate was that 206,500 people living with HIV (PLHIV), or equivalent to 21% of the number estimated to be in need, were on ART in South Africa as at December 2005 These values should be treated with caution given the South African Government data upon which the estimate was made [7]. Despite the AIDS denialism of President Mbeki and Minister Tshabalala-Msimang, significant government financial resources were mobilized These resources were insufficient despite the efforts of the South African Government and the initiation of PEPFAR after the announcement of the comprehensive plan. Until the issue of resource mobilization in health, especially human resources, is adequately addressed, the goals of the comprehensive plan will prove difficult to achieve
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
