South Africa to double AIDS treatment by 2013

Pretoria, 25 March-(ANA)-The South African government is to increase the number of people being treated for AIDS from around 900,000 to 2.1 million by 2013, reports say.

The country, home to at least 5.7 million people infected with HIV -- one of the heaviest caseloads in the world -- hopes to more than double the number of people on antiretroviral drugs by expanding treatment to all children under the age of one.

Pregnant women and patients with both tuberculosis and AIDS will receive treatment if their CD4 (count of patient’s immune cells) or T-cell counts are 350 or less.

Currently public hospitals dispense antiretroviral (ARV) drugs only when HIV deteriorates to AIDS and the count of patients' immune cells -- CD4 or T-Cells -- falls below 200.

South Africa is moving away from the policies of its previous government, which drew sharp criticism for questioning the link between AIDS and HIV and advocating homegrown "cures" like beetroot and garlic

Thin margins mean South Africa's 7-billion-rand ($952.6 million) plan to expand HIV/AIDS treatment is unlikely to translate into big profits for the country's drugmakers or make them targets for western rivals.(ANA)

FA/ANA/25 March 2010----