DOH to intensify AIDS/HIV information campaign

MANILA, Philippines — As the country expects to have close to 266,000 cases of HIV by 2028, the Department of Health (DOH) is set to scale up its battle against the disease.  

In a statement, DOH Secretary Francisco Duque III said they are gearing up for a “large-scale battle” against HIV/AIDS by addressing its “root cause” – which is lack of knowledge about the disease.

Over the last couple of years, Duque said the number of Filipinos with HIV/AIDS have drastically increased.    

“Just over the past decade, the average rate of new HIV cases in the Philippines has grown from one per day to 31 per day. And this figure does not include undocumented cases,” he noted.  

The country also has highest percent of increase of new HIV cases in the Asia and Pacific region from 2010 to 2016, at 133 percent.

Duque added that “more than anyone else, we at DOH take this very seriously, that’s why we’ve decided to partner with people and organizations that will allow us to address the root cause of this growing epidemic.”

As part of the campaign, the DOH launched the LHIVE FREE to beef up information campaign about HIV/AIDS and to promote safe sex, in partnership with Integrative Competitive Intelligence Asia (ICI Asia).

Duque underscored the need to  equip people with the right knowledge about HIV and AIDS to effectively combat the disease.