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Cabinet gearing up for discussion on HIV/AIDS
Jeremy Michaels and Christelle Terreblanche. 12 June 2003. The Star. Republished courtesy of Independent Newspapers (Pty) Ltd.
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It will be three to four weeks before the cabinet considers proposals for a new treatment plan for HIV/AIDS. The government has agreed with business and labour on a treatment plan, including anti-retrovirals for mineworkers, according to chief government spokesperson Joel Netshitenzhe.
While the joint national treasury-department of health task team set up by the government to investigate the feasibility of rolling out anti-retrovirals in public health facilities was continuing its work, the government, mine bosses and workers unions had agreed to a comprehensive treatment plan for mineworkers which would include anti-retrovirals.
At a media briefing on the cabinet's meeting on Wednesday, Netshitenzhe said the cabinet had welcomed a report on the HIV/AIDS mining summit held on April 30, 2003.
The government had agreed with the other role-players on a plan that would include "voluntary testing and counselling; continuing care for those living with HIV/AIDS, including healthy diets and anti-retroviral treatment; collaboration in monitoring extended usage of anti-retrovirals and traditional as well as natural medicines; and the need to improve the standard of housing for mineworkers".
A government-business-labour HIV/AIDS committee was working on transforming the summit's declaration of intent into an action plan with specific targets and time-lines.
Netshitenzhe complained that reporting on the outcome of the summit had been very limited, fuelling his impression that the media was ignoring positive news on HIV and AIDS while waiting to seize on controversial aspects of the story.
Replying to questions on the Treasury-Health Department task team's report, he said work was continuing and the cabinet would consider it in three to four weeks' time. "A number of questions were posed on the basis of initial drafts.
There were some areas which required improvement and so on, and that work is continuing on the part of the task team," he said.
Earlier this week Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang lifted the lid on aspects of the new treatment plan for HIV/AIDS, saying the current treatment options in the public health sector would be augmented by a "greater focus on nutrition, food supplementation and the use of immune boosters in order to encourage positive living and to delay the progression from HIV to AIDS".
Speaking in her budget vote debate in the National Council of Provinces on Tuesday, Tshabalala-Msimang also revealed that she was working with the departments of Agriculture and Social Development to provide support for those infected and affected by HIV/AIDS.
It is understood this could result in the promotion of vegetable gardens to sustain communities ravaged by HIV/AIDS.
A third treatment option she gave a glimpse of was the special unit at the Medical Research Council researching the safety and efficacy of traditional herbal medicines in the treatment of HIV/AIDS. |
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