260,000 HIV-positive people in Ukraine
“It is becoming increasingly difficult for people to access the care they need, including HIV services,” said UNAIDS Executive Director Winnie Byanyima. “Before the outbreak of the war, UNAIDS estimated the number of HIV-positive people in Ukraine at 260,000, including 152,000 who were taking HIV drugs daily (….) Without access to antiretroviral drugs, people living with HIV will die,” the agency points out. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates there have been 82 separate attacks on hospitals, ambulances and doctors in Ukraine since the start of the war, killing 72 and injuring at least 43. Nearly 50% of Ukrainian pharmacies are potentially closed and many health professionals are displaced or unable to work.
Provide ARVs for twelve months
Faced with this situation, various international organizations, whether UN (UNAIDS, WHO, Unicef, etc.) or not (Usaid, the Pepfar plan and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria) have joined forces “to provide HIV-positive people with medicine for twelve months in Ukraine”. A delivery of 209,000 antiretroviral treatments for 90 days has arrived in Lviv, Ukraine, to be brought to people in need, explains a recent press release from UNAIDS. However, distribution in the country is likely to be difficult, especially in conflict areas. As a result, UNAIDS calls for “respect and protection of humanitarian corridors to allow the distribution of humanitarian aid and the safe passage of civilians to areas where there is no fighting”. “Thanks to remarkable efforts by civil society and government, most sites providing antiretroviral treatment are still at least partially functioning, but the war has disrupted supply chains and patient access to these sites. said Winnie Byanyima of UNAIDS. “Partners on the ground are working to get essential medicines to people with attention to safety. The flexibility for civil society to reach people is paramount and funds are urgently needed to support and strengthen these vital links. »
A call for funding
UNAIDS has appealed for funding to support people living with HIV and key populations to access HIV services and basic humanitarian needs, including the uninterrupted provision of HIV treatment and services harm reduction such as opioid substitution therapy. People living with HIV concerned by the situation are invited to contact the HIV Info Line in Ukraine: 0800 500 45, to obtain more information on the availability of anti-HIV treatment.
In its press release, UNAIDS stresses that “several prisons are no longer controlled by the Ukrainian government. Prisoners in need must have access to antiretroviral treatment against HIV or an OST (…) More than four million people have fled Ukraine since the beginning of the war. It is estimated that up to 1% of refugees may be living with HIV and in need of HIV services”. As part of efforts to ensure continuity of HIV treatment, WHO, co-sponsoring UNAIDS, has contributed to an agreement with the pharmaceutical group ViiV Healthcare for donations of anti-HIV drugs to Poland, to the Czech Republic and other countries of the European Union hosting large numbers of refugees from Ukraine. the site initiative Art Initiative for Ukrainians Abroad, established in coordination with the Ukrainian Public Health Center, provides additional assistance to Ukrainian refugees living with HIV. The World Health Organization is working with the Ukrainian Public Health Center on collecting data, while maintaining confidentiality, to understand where war-affected people living with HIV are and what their needs are. There is currently no precise data on the movements of HIV-positive people who have already left the country as a result of the war and its consequences.