SANAC: Strike to Affect TB & AIDS Patients

AIDS workers have expressed concern about the effects of a national public service strike on HIV-positive people needing chronic medication.

In a press statement, the South African National AIDS Council (SANAC) states that the current wage dispute between the government and the trade unions could place the success of the recent gains in HIV and tuberculosis (TB) treatment at risk.

SANAC says that It acknowledges the right of health workers to take industrial action, however, it is concerned that people who rely on the public health sector for medical care are being turned away, and in some cases intimidated, when presenting themselves for re-stocking of their medication.

It further warns that a break in the continuity of ARVs and TB medication had serious implications for the patients.

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