"Grappling with Covid-19 pandemic for almost two years, the other crucial health issues like HIV, tuberculosis, other infectious diseases similarly other non-infectious health emergencies and exigencies got neglected in India and elsewhere. That resulted in non-achievement of WHO target 90-90-90 by 2020; which was set for 90% of people with HIV should know their status, 90% of HIV infected people who know their status should be put on antiretroviral therapy (ART) and 90% of those on ART should have their HIV-viral loads suppressed" said Dr Ishwar Gilada, who is also the President of AIDS Society of India (ASI), and among the first doctors to begin HIV medical management and care when first case got diagnosed in the country 35 years back.
Failure to end HIV-discrimination punctures the gains made in fighting AIDS
India has made a commendable progress since 7 April 2004 when it began the rollout of lifesaving antiretroviral therapy (ART) for people living with HIV, but formidable challenges remain. India along with other nations worldwide missed meeting the target of zero discrimination by 2020. Zero discrimination milestone now has been shifted to 2030, albeit with a caveat, "less than 10% discrimination by 2030".
India has a golden opportunity to end HIV-related discrimination by fully implementing the HIV/AIDS (prevention and control) Act 2017. Groups such as the AIDS Society of India (ASI) worked hard to call for the law for ending all forms of HIV-related stigma and discrimination. Now ASI is calling for ensuring that all social security measures which are part of our legal framework must be guaranteed to every person living with HIV so that progress towards HIV care and support be fully galvanized, and also to prevent the Act being termed as a 'toothless Act'.
Dr Ishwar Gilada said "Even four years after the HIV/AIDS Act 2017 is in place, there are no appointments of state Ombudsman; which is a mandatory provision in the Act. We yet to see a single prosecution under the provisions of this Act and it no way connotes those violations have not happened. In fact there is an urgent need to create awareness about existence of the Act and its provisions. People living with HIV are denied 'mediclaim' policies, as such policies still mention HIV in exclusion criteria. Life Insurances have still provision to not allow people living with HIV to take policies for insured sum more than INR 10 lacs (INR 1 million). Despite ASI approaching the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) and it agreeing to the issues raised by ASI, there is no headway."
Another example of inaction comes from laws for the welfare of communities who are among those most-at-risk of HIV. Despite the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act 2019, the transgender community continues to face denial and rejection in areas such as employment, health, and public services.
"Without bold action against inequalities, India as well as other countries in the world risks missing the targets to end AIDS by 2030, as well as a prolonged Covid-19 pandemic and a spiraling social and economic crisis if we do not share the fruits of research and developments by way of supplying Covid-19 vaccines to Low and Middle-income countries" emphasized Dr Ishwar Gilada.
Forty years since the first AIDS cases were reported in the world, and 35 years since first case was reported in India, HIV still threatens us. Today, the world is off track from delivering on the shared commitment to end AIDS by 2030 not because of a lack of knowledge or tools to beat AIDS, but because of structural inequalities that obstruct proven solutions to HIV prevention and treatment.
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