Hanoi (VNA) - Simultaneous events wereheld in Hanoi, Hai Phong city, Nghe An province and Ho Chi Minh City on March 8to celebrate the first patients receiving antiretroviral (ARV) drugs covered bysocial health insurance (SHI).

Co-organised by the Vietnam Authority forHIV/AIDS Control (VAAC), the Ministry of Health and the US President’sEmergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), the events mark an important milestonein securing domestic sustainable financing for the HIV response in Vietnam andensuring that people living with HIV access treatment services.

Over 400 representatives from governmentagencies, international organisations, community-based organisations workingwith HIV patients, people living with HIV, and media agencies attended the fourevents.

HIV patients need lifelong treatment that can becostly and early and continuous treatment enables them to lead healthy livesand effectively eliminates the risk of sexual transmission to their partners,according to a press release issued by the US Embassy on March.

Historically, ARVs were provided free-of-chargein Vietnam through international donors. However, over the last five years, thePEPFAR programme, through its activities, has been working with the Governmentof Vietnam to transition the responsibility for financing the country’s HIVresponse from donors to SHI.

Key in the transition was revising the SocialHealth Insurance Law and benefit package to include funding for HIV treatment;integrating HIV clinics in the public health system; increasing the number ofHIV patients enrolled in SHI from 40 per cent in 2014 to 89 per cent in 2018;procuring ARVs through SHI; and creating procedures for HIV servicesreimbursement by SHI.

Across the world, very few developing countriesare applying their SHI programmes to cover HIV treatment services. Among thePEPFAR focused countries, Vietnam is the only country mobilising domesticresources through SHI to cover HIV treatment services. This can be attributedto the Government of Vietnam’s strong commitment to the long-termsustainability of its HIV/AIDS response.

Vietnam is also a global leader in achievingviral suppression, at 93 percent. Viral suppression is a measurement of thedegree to which the HIV virus is in a person’s bloodstream.

When an HIV positive patient achieves viralsuppression and has an undetectable viral load, not only do they have asignificantly increased likelihood of improved health outcomes, but it alsoeliminates their likelihood of transmitting HIV.-VNA