Ukraine's Parliament recently approved a bill that would establish a national program to increase HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment efforts in the country.

The bill, titled "On Approving a National Program for Ensuring Prevention of HIV Infections, Treatment, Care and Support of HIV Carriers and AIDS Patients during the 2009-2013 Period", aims to curb the impact that the disease is having on the country's population by introducing a government policy that would increase both HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment.

Under the national program, preventive measures would include increasing the safety of blood products; providing access to large-scale primary prophylactics, especially among at-risk groups; and increasing efforts to prevent mother-to-child transmission.

Improved treatment efforts would include no-cost counseling and HIV tests, access to antiretroviral and support therapy, and psychological support to those living with HIV/AIDS.

The program will require about 3.7 billion Ukrainian hryvnia, or about $730 million.

Ukraine's adult HIV/AIDS prevalence is estimated at 1.63%. The bill states that more than 122,000 HIV cases were registered in Ukraine as of 1st January of this year.

The program attributes issues with current HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment efforts, as well as the increase in the number of new cases, to socioeconomic problems, such as inadequate medical and social-assistance infrastructures and insufficient funding for prevention and treatment efforts.

Source: Medical News Today, 3 October 2008