90 OFWs Diagnosed with New HIV Cases in January 2019

News World

90 OFWs Diagnosed with New HIV Cases in January 2019

Ninety Filipino workers employed abroad within the past five years were diagnosed with the human immunodeficiency virus in January 2019.

This is up 32 percent when compared to the 68 cases reported during the same month in 2018, and comprise 7% of total new diagnosed cases for the month.

Almost all were infected through sexual contact (19 male-female sex, 47 male-male sex, and 22 sex with both males and females) and two had no data on mode of transmission. Ninety-one percent (82) of the new cases were composed of males. Of the eight cases involving female OFWs, one case was from 15-24 age group, two cases were 25-34 years old, three cases were 35-49 years old and two cases were older than 50 years.

“The January cases brought to 6,345 the cumulative number of OFWs found living with HIV since the government began passive surveillance of the virus in 1984,” the group Acts-OFW said.

OFWs now comprise 10 percent of the 63,278 confirmed cases listed in the National HIV/AIDS Registry as of January, it added.

Of the 6,345 OFWs in the registry, 86 percent, or 5,471, were male with the median age of 32 years. The 874 female OFWs in the registry had a median age of 34 years.

HIV causes AIDS, or the Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, which destroys the human body’s natural ability to fight off all kinds of infections.

Though the condition still does not have any known cure, antiretroviral therapy has been known to slow down the virus.

The party-list group said it was counting on the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) to deliver “highly-improved support” to the growing number of OFWs living with HIV, as mandated by the new AIDS Prevention and Control Law that took effect Jan. 25.

Section 37 of the new law compels the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) and other agencies to develop a program to provide stigma-free comprehensive reintegration, care and support for OFWs with HIV, the group said.

“Under the law, the economic, social and medical support is to be extended to all OFWs, regardless of employment status and stage in the migration process,” it added.

From January 1984 to January 2019, ten percent of the total cases were OFWs. Of these, 5,471 (86%) were male. Majority (72%) of the male cases were infected through sexual contact among MSM (2,283 male-male sex and 1,651 sex with both males and females). The ages of male OFWs ranged from 16 to 80 years (median: 32 years). Among female OFWs, ages ranged from 20 to 73 years.

Section 17 of the law also requires all OFWs as well as Philippine government staff for foreign posting to undergo a seminar on the causes, manner of prevention, and impact of HIV and AIDS.