October 2nd, 2009
2:23 pm
This article discusses the issue of countries who automatically deport migrants who have HIV and AIDS. Also for those in detention centers, no treatment is given. The Human Rights Watch believes that this is an automatic death sentence. They want all migrants to have access to treatment while detained and if/when they are deported that they continue to have access to treatments. The major problem is that when these people are deported it is often to places that don’t have good care for HIV patients. Also in some places there is discrimination against people with HIV and AIDS. These people need the life saving medications to be continued or else they build up immunity to them. So when they do not receive care after being deported they will most likely not respond to treatments if they ever again do have access to them. The article also states that governments are committed to having universal access to HIV treatment by next year. Also researchers in Thailand believe they have discovered a new vaccine that will decrease the risk of contracting HIV by one third.
I do believe that it is wrong to deny people access to medications they need in order to live. It seems especially heinous to do it to people who are detained for one reason or another. I can kind of understand why they wouldn’t want to let in people who have an infectious disease. I mean when immigration was big here through Elis Island, anyone who was sick was sent away so as not to infect everyone else. I mean it is a bit more complicated to get HIV (you’re not going to get it from the guy next to you sneezing like you would with some kinds of diseases) but it is still prevalent throughout the world and a major social health concern. I like the fact that Thailand may have found a vaccine to help although not protect entirely. I think the governments’ goal of having universal access to HIV medication by next year might be a little too ambitious, especially in a world economy run by money. There are a lot of people who cannot get HIV medication because they simply can’t afford it. They can barely afford food and water, then to throw medication into the mix. Seems like a pretty hard thing to accomplish. I would love to see it though, don’t get me wrong. I believe that all people should have access to the medications and life saving operations that they need regardless of their ability to pay. Healthcare should be a basic right, not something reserved for those who can afford it.
http://www.voanews.com/english/2009-09-24-voa52.cfm
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