Three high-profile organisations are throwing their weight behind the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) in its protracted legal battle with the government to widen access to the anti-HIV drug, Nevirapine. Cotlands, one of SA's best-known baby sanctuaries, the Institute for Democracy in SA (Idasa) and the Community Law Centre (CLC) are hoping to add their arguments to next month's Constitutional Court case, which will settle the long-running dispute between TAC and the government over the provision of Nevirapine to HIV-positive pregnant women in public healthcare facilities.
Equity in Health
INITIATIVE TO PROMOTE ACCESS TO QUALITY HIV MEDICINES RELEASES FIRST BATCH OF RESULTS
A new effort to assess the quality of HIV medicines could make treatment services more accessible to poor countries. The World Health Organization (WHO) has evaluated several HIV-related medicines and has published the first list of products which were found to meet WHO recommended standards. This initial phase of the project includes forty products from eight branded and generic manufacturers. Managed by WHO, the initiative counts on the expertise of UNICEF and the UNAIDS Secretariat, and is supported by the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) and the World Bank.
SOUTH AFRICA: GOVERNMENT STAGES A DRAMATIC ABOUT-TURN ON ITS HIV/AIDS POLICY
President Thabo Mbeki and his cabinet have at last backed off from their controversial stance on antiretroviral drugs, with a high-powered government delegation announcing before journalists that the health department is working on a universal roll-out plan of nevirapine. In a first admission of the efficacy of the drugs, Health Minister Manto Tshabala-Msimang read from the executive's statement: "Cabinet noted that they (antiretrovirals) could help improve the conditions of people living with AIDS if administered at certain stages in the progression of the condition, in accordance with international standards."
South Africa: Nevirapine Probe to Go Ahead
THE Medicines Control Council says it is to go ahead with an investigation into the safety of nevirapine, the drug that prevents motherto-child transmission of HIV. The council's investigation comes a month after nevirapine's manufacturers, Boehringer Ingelheim, informed the council that it had withdrawn its application to register the drug with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in the prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV.
TANZANIA: HIV/AIDS prevalence increasing in Zanzibar
United Nations HIV/AIDS experts believe HIV/AIDS prevalence in Zanzibar is on a steady increase, but are worried that currently available data could be underestimating the actual magnitude of the pandemic in the semi-autonomous islands.
TANZANIA: Shipment of 10 million condoms blocked
A shipment of 10 million condoms, imported by the United Nations Fund for Population Activities (UNFPA) for free distribution across Tanzania, is currently being held in Dar es Salaam harbour, awaiting clearance after confusion as to whether they have passed quality control requirements.
WHO and UNAIDS still support the use of nevirapine, despite 'Irregularities' On Kampala Trials
Despite flaws in documentation and reporting in clinical trials of HIVNET 012 found by the United States' National Institute for Health, the World Health Organization and UNAIDS say they will still back prevention of mother to child transmission with the use of Nevirapine.
WHO TAKES MAJOR STEPS TO MAKE HIV TREATMENT ACCESSIBLE
Treatment Guidelines and AIDS Medicines List Announced by WHO
22 April 2002, Geneva. In a decisive move to strengthen action against AIDS in developing countries, WHO today announced the first treatment guidelines for HIV/AIDS in poor settings. Parallel to that, WHO has endorsed the inclusion of AIDS medicines in its Essential Medicines List. The action is a breakthrough in a comprehensive ?prevention through care? package that could contribute to drastically widening access to treatment over the coming years. The Guidelines for Scaling Up Antiretroviral Therapy and the 2002 WHO Model List of Essential Drugs are available on the WHO web site.
World Urbanization Prospects: The 2001 Revision
Population Division of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs, United Nations, March 2002. Available online. The "2001 Revision" presents estimates and projections of urban and rural populations for major areas, regions and countries of the world for the period 1950-2030. It also provides population estimates and projections of urban agglomerations with 750,000 or more inhabitants in 2000 for the period 1950-2015, and the population of all capitals in 2001. Virtually all the population growth expected at the world level during the next 30 years will be concentrated in urban areas. Also, for the first time in the world?s history, the number of urban dwellers will equal the number of rural dwellers in 2007. These findings are from just-released United Nations official estimates and projections of urban, rural and city populations, prepared by the Population Division of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs.
Further details: /newsletter/id/29132
Abstract news from Barcelona 2002 conference
The XIV International AIDS Conference (Barcelona, Spain, July 2002) has received almost 10 500 abstract submissions from the world’s leading scientists, clinicians, community representatives and people living with HIV/AIDS. This is the highest number of submissions ever received in the history of the series of international AIDS conferences.