South Africa: Free State Suffering Continues

1 September 2009

Drug stock-outs are continuing in the Free State with many HIV patients continuing to die while waiting to access anti-retrovirals while scores of patients who are already on treatment are defaulting as health facilities run out of drugs.

The Free State health department controversially implemented a moratorium on HIV treatment late last year and only lifted it after then health minister Barbara Hogan secured donor funds to finance the programme until the new financial year kicked in earlier this year. However, by then the waiting list had grown to over 15 000 and an estimated 30 patients were dying every day.

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