CHENNAI: Health Minister Ma Subramanian launched the new HIV and Syphilis testing kits procured at a budget of Rs 9 lakh, at an event organised by the health department as part of World AIDS Day celebrations on Wednesday.
Speaking at the event, the health minister said, 4,00,000 kits have been procured for use, and 9 lakh woman (including pregnant women) will be tested on a yearly basis. In Tamil Nadu, 1.30 lakh people live with HIV. The prevalence of HIV in the country is at 0.24%, while the percentage in the state has gone down from 0.35% in 2018 to 0.17% at present, Health Secretary Gagandeep Singh Bedi said.
Four cases of the JN.1 variant of Covid-19 have been reported in Tamil Nadu so far. In general, people who have tested positive for Covid-19 do not present with severe symptoms and they get better in a few days, the minister added.
Subramanian also announced that the state will organise a marathon exclusively for transpersons from across the country, as part of Kalaignar’s centenary celebrations. Dr T S Selvavinayagam, director of public health and preventative medicine, said that although the overall HIV prevalence and also antenatal HIV prevalence have come down, a new challenge has emerged in reducing prevalence within at-risk groups.
Persons who suspect they might be infected should get themselves tested, and should take antiretroviral therapy (ART) drugs. Viral suppression must be carried out so that we can achieve the goal of no new infections by 2030, the director added.