In Mon State, it is increasingly difficult to get medical supplies and access to healthcare support for HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) patients.
During the State Administrative Council (SAC) there were difficulties in raising awareness, and providing supplies and delivering medicine for those suffering from HIV.
“We have sent people to homes, because they are not able to come to us. Now that the political situation is so bad, it is difficult to get to these people who are sometimes in remote or distant places. We are under a lot of scrutiny. It is not safe. We are not even allowed to provide educational programs or deliver preventative health information,” said an HIV healthcare advocate. .
Some people with severe illnesses due to HIV have lost their lives due to drug misuse. Most of those infected with HIV are young people, said another advocate.
There are also shortages of drugs for HIV patients. The treatment for HIV is called antiretroviral therapy (ART). ART involves taking a combination of HIV medicines (called an HIV treatment regimen) every day. ART is recommended for everyone who has HIV. ART cannot cure HIV, but HIV medicines help people with HIV live longer, healthier lives. More than 5,000 people are taking ART in Mon State due to HIV infection.
“We are always educating and supporting young people. And now it is difficult for patients to get their own ART medicine. There are too many checkpoints,” he said.
HIV advocates say the lack of adequate protection and treatment, including education, has led to an increase in the rate of HIV infection.
