The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday that it has launched a program to build an HIV infection prevention system through schools, family and social networks to tackle the challenge of AIDS head on.
Ivory Lin (林宜慧), secretary-general of the Persons with HIV/AIDS Rights Advocacy Association of Taiwan, wrote in a letter to the Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister paper) on Saturday that the government should not scapegoat HIV prevention efforts after public comments the funding for rabies vaccines is lacking because the proportion of HIV/AIDS medication funds is “so high.”
Lin added that sex education should be taught to parents also, “enabling [the latter] to face up to the reality of HIV.”
The CDC said that according to the disease surveillance data, the spread of HIV in the country is mostly associated with “unsafe sex practices among young people and homosexuals.”
Since the risk of HIV transmission can only be contained if society understands the disease, long-term disease prevention education has to be put in place, the disease control agency said.
The government’s new strategy for the targeted groups is to provide related education via social media, community centers and the Internet to broaden the screening network, upgrade the medical support for people infected with the disease and to strengthen early detection and infection control, the CDC said.