AIDS treatment to be included in Medical Insurance

Reporter: Zhang Xidong

The Zhejiang Province government today announced that from 1 March it will implement the AIDS and STD Prevention and Control Regulation, and that each level of government’s disease control plan will be incorporated into the economic and social planning. With the government’s unified leadership, some major problems in disease control and prevention work will be resolved.

First demarcation of forbidden zone

It is reported that the province’s order for the first time demarcates STI/HIV forbidden zones, including prohibiting organizations that take blood and work with blood or blood products using blood from people infected with HIV; prohibiting any unit or person from using any blood product that has not been tested by supervisory inspection departments; prohibiting any use of body parts, organs, tissue, bone or any fluids from people infected with HIV; prohibiting people infected with HIV from donating any body parts, except for scientific research and with the approval of provincial or higher level health authorities.

The regulation also requires that reports of the epidemic be open, that medical staff and testing staff be responsible for reporting, and that any case or suspected case of HIV or STD infection must be reported to the local disease control authorities. No unit or person is permitted to conceal or prevent the report of epidemics. HIV and STD epidemic reports will come be province-level health authorities, and no other body or person is permitted to reveal them.

Service sector personnel to get regular health inspections

From 1 March, in addition to condoms being available in all public places, staff at hotels, inns, beauty salons, music halls, saunas, massage and bath parlors, swimming pools and other places of business will be required to have regular health exams, including HIV tests, and be required to have health certificates. Those infected with HIV and STD will not be permitted to work in service jobs.

HIV tests will be required for border entry and exit. If foreigners, overseas Chinese, Hong Kong, Macau or Taiwan residents are discovered to have HIV/AIDS, they will be medically examined, disinfected, and directly deported. Provincial, city, country (district) governments should all establish examination labs to discover and confirm sick people. Prisons, drug detox centers, detention centers and reform through labor centers whould all establish testing laboratories.

Treatment costs to be included in Health Insurance

The previously chaotic STD treatment market will be straightened out. No body or individual will be permitted to engage in HIV or STD treatment activities without permission. It is forbidden to sell, rent, lend sub-contract, or use any cooperative structure to transfer permission to treat HIV/AIDS or STD or such facilities. HIV/AIDS patients must go to designated medical institutions for treatment, and those with HIV/AIDS who are already participating in basic health insurance coverage will have their treatment costs included in the basic health insurance coverage.

Those incarcerated criminals and suspects, those undergoing reform through labor, those under detention or in drug detox centers who are infected with HIV/AIDS will receive isolated treatment from the health unit of the incarcerating unit. Early release is not permitted. For those people with HIV/AIDS or STDs whose jobs risk transmission of HIV or STDs, their work units will be notified and must take measures within one month to adjust the person’s employment. However, it is not permitted to dismiss the person or cancel their work contract, and confidentiality must be ensured.