AIDS Intervention Programs Reduce Mother-to-Fetus Transmission in China

China’s efforts to reduce mother-to-baby HIV transmission are paying off, according to Fu Wei, a senior official with the Ministry of Health.

China’s pilot program providing free HIV testing and counseling for pregnant women launched in 2003 in eight counties in five provinces. By 2010, it had expanded to 1,156 counties in 31 provincial divisions.

In areas offering the intervention, the proportion of babies infected by their HIV-positive mothers dropped to 7.9 percent from 33 percent in 2003. Last year, China added free syphilis and hepatitis B testing to the program.

In 2010, the outreach cost 839 million yuan (US $131 million) and reached 6.4 million pregnant women, or about 44 percent of China’s expectant mothers. As of June, 17,202 pregnant women in China were diagnosed as HIV-positive, Fu said.

The Friends of AIDS Foundation is dedicated to enhancing the quality of life for HIV positive individuals and empowering people to make healthy choices to prevent the spread of the HIV virus. To learn more about The Friends of AIDS Foundation, please visit: http://www.friendsofaids.org.

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