Palace responds to reports on spike in HIV-AIDS cases

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MANILA, Philippines – Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said yesterday that the government is “not lacking in the campaign against HIV,” even as he voiced the alarm of the Palace over the rising number of cases of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) infection in the Philippines.

Lacierda said that the Department of Health (DOH) should explain why the cases of HIV and AIDS have risen, despite efforts and awareness campaign to curb the incidence of HIV and AIDS.

“There are measures undertaken to ensure the prevention of HIV. Unfortunately, those who engage in certain activities, some of them don’t seem to follow… the safe way of doing it,” he said.

The DOH earlier revealed that just under 500 new cases of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) were recorded in November 2014; 28-percent higher than in November 2013.

Of the 492 new cases of HIV infection documented by the DOH’s National Epidemiology Center, two-thirds fall into the 15-24 age range.

Majority – 464, to be precise – of the cases were infected with the virus through sexual contact.

Twenty-eight cases reported intravenous drug use as the source of infection.

The DOH also reported that 40 of the cases had progressed to acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), and that there were 10 deaths among those with full-blown AIDS.