Study Examines India's HIV/AIDS Plan

Main Category: HIV / AIDS
Article Date: 10 Jul 2008 - 10:00 PDT

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"Tackling HIV in India: Evidence-Based Priority Setting and Programming," Health Affairs: The study -- written by Mariam Claeson of the World Bank and Ashok Alexander of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's Indian HIV/AIDS initiative Avahan -- examines India's five-year, $2.5 billion HIV/AIDS plan and the lessons it offers for other countries. About 70% of the program's budget is allocated for prevention, with one-third dedicated to prevention initiatives aimed at high-risk groups and the remainder going toward expanding HIV testing and other services for pregnant women. About 20% of the program's budget is allocated for treatment and care. "Globally, we have solid evidence for what works in addressing concentrated epidemics through large-scale programs, focusing on vulnerable communities at highest risk," the authors write, adding, "The challenge today is scaling up proven interventions to provide services to the vast majority of populations at risk. In most countries in Asia, this will require expanding programs in both geographic reach and populations served, monitoring the quality and use of services, and measuring the impact on behavioral change" (Health Affairs release, 7/7).

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