By Adolf Washington
Vatican, Dec 1: On the occasion of World Aids Day, the Catholic Bishops Conference Commission for Health has vowed to render greater care for AIDS victims and the HIV infected. Chairman of the Commission Archbishop Bernard Moras has expressed the need for ART (Anti-Retroviral Therapy) which prevents HIV infection from progressing into AIDS. “With the incorporation of ART into the national programs, and availability of drugs through the ART centers, free of cost, universal access has become a possibility” he said.
“We need to rediscover the principles of Primary Health Care with special focus on the poorer and those in remote places so that essential drugs are available free of cost and there is equitable distribution” the Archbishop said. “This is where we have to concertedly keep our promises. This is the key to universal access.” The archbishop added.
“This promise can happen when politicians keep their promises of good governance by strengthening the primary health care systems in the country even as the Church Health Commission vows to take greater initiatives to help HIV/AIDS infected.” The Archbishop said.
Calling for concerted action to confront the dreaded disease, the archbishop called for NGOs, CBOs, FBOs, the corporate sector, the peoples’ movements, and the other civil society initiatives, to rise above their own little world and work together, towards strengthening the National programs.
The Catholic Church health care network with over 5,500 health care institutions, is the 2nd largest in the country next to the Government of India. 80 percent of the Catholic Health Care institutions are in remote parts of the country. “The Government can work towards strengthening these centres to promote its national programmes”. The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI), through its health commission, had been involved in the PACT project (Promoting Access to Care and Treatment) sponsored by the Global Fund since June, 2007.
A total of 18,381 People Living with HIV (PLHIV) have been enrolled and accessed services through the Church-run health programmes till August 2009.