Activists Campaign to End HIV/AIDS Epidemic in Ontario
TORONTO, May 23, 2018 /CNW/ - Activists across the province are lobbying party leaders and provincial election candidates to promise to end the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Ontario by 2026.
"We have world-class treatment programs in Ontario and a comprehensive plan to end the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Ontario over the next eight years," says Precious Maseko, Co-Chair of the Ontario AIDS Network. "We are asking the parties to commit themselves to the goal of ending the HIV/AIDS epidemic in this province."
Treatment programs in Ontario are exceeding UN targets for fighting the epidemic, with 94% of Ontarians diagnosed with HIV who are on treatment achieving untransmittable levels of HIV. They can live active, healthy lives.
But two or three people are still diagnosed with HIV every day across the province. "The real problem is that 19% of Ontarians with HIV have still not been diagnosed," says Maseko. "Now that HIV is a treatable infection and AIDS is a rare medical condition, the danger is complacency.
"That's why AIDS Service Organizations (ASOs) across Ontario are reaching out to the parties and candidates and asking them to commit to winning this fight. We don't want the province to falter when success is so clearly in sight."
ASOs point to the need to expand initiatives for prevention, harm reduction and early diagnosis. They say the province also needs to invest in programs to ensure that Ontarians with HIV can maintain their treatment.
"The drugs work, but the cost can drive people out of their treatment program. Alberta, Saskatchewan and PEI all provide 100% coverage for HIV drugs for treatment and BC covers both treatment and prevention. Ontario has to expand drug plan coverage if we're going to defeat this epidemic," says Maseko.
"Many of our clients are homeless or insecurely housed, which is another huge challenge to staying on treatment. We need to make supportive housing a key part of our toolbox for fighting HIV and AIDS."
The Ontario AIDS Network (OAN) is a member agency composed of all the AIDS Service Organizations (ASOs) and affiliated organizations across the province. ASOs are community-based, volunteer-driven organizations that provide programs to fight the spread of HIV and provide crucial supports to HIV-positive Ontarians.
SOURCE Ontario AIDS Network
Ryan Kerr, Manager of Communications and Member Development, Ontario AIDS Network, 416-364-4555 ext. 303 [email protected]
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