Associated Press

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia: The spread of AIDS in Malaysia could wipe out economic gains the country has made over the last 50 years, a top health official warned Thursday.

If stronger steps are not taken to stop the spread of AIDS, Malaysia could be swept by an epidemic, which will strike people in the prime of their lives and devastate the work force, said the Health Ministry’s director of disease control, Ramlee Rahmat.

"This may wipe out all the developmental gains we have achieved since independence" in 1957, Ramlee said in a speech at the opening of a U.N.-organized conference to commemorate World AIDS Day Dec. 1.

Three people die from AIDS-related illness every day in Malaysia, the Health Ministry said in June. About 73,000 Malaysians have been infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. Three-quarters of people with HIV are intravenous drug users and 7 percent are women.

Ramlee said the country was "committed to making antiretroviral therapy affordable and accessible to all who need it" and had "taken courageous steps before this in ‘breaking’ the patent law by importing cheaper, generic antiretroviral drugs."

He said Malaysia only "recently" began its pilot project to provide free antiretroviral drugs at government clinics, with an aim to reach 5,000 by year’s end.

Ramlee told reporters it previously cost the government around 2,200 ringgit (US$606; €460.59) per person monthly for antiretroviral drug treatment, but said the introduction of a locally produced version of the treatment brought the cost down to around 150 ringgit (US$41.36; €31.44), enabling the government to provide it for free.

In 2004, the Malaysian government enacted a law allowing it to import generic versions of AIDS drugs for "noncommercial" or nonprofit distribution. This followed a World Trade Organization agreement the previous year allowing countries facing a public health emergency to issue "compulsory licenses" to manufacture generic versions of patented drugs.

But nongovernmental organizations providing care to AIDS patients and activists have said if Malaysia and the United States conclude a free trade agreement being negotiated now, the cost of generic drugs could rise dramatically under patent protection laws. The two countries hope to sign a pact by mid-2007.

The World Health Organization’s representative for Malaysia, Dr. Han Tieru, said that instead of being concerned about the cost of the drug, health workers must worry about the fact that only 10 percent of the people with the virus are currently under treatment.
On Thursday, the United Nations also prodded the Muslim-majority Southeast Asian nation to pump more funds into curbing the spread of AIDS.

"The undeniable fact is that HIV/AIDS numbers are continuing to rise. The numbers continue to go up exponentially," U.N. resident coordinator for Malaysia, Richard Leete, told reporters.

"We need to campaign the government to put more resources into the fight."

Fonte: http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2006/11/30/asia/AS_MED_Malaysia_AIDS.php
Acessado em 30/11/2006