People who are diagnosed with HIV should should not have to wait any longer to start taking medication to fight their infection, according to the NZ AIDS Foundation. The Foundation says the change would improve the health prospects for people with HIV, contribute to the reduction of the spread of the virus and reduce the cost of HIV infections to the government. Currently government drug buying agency Pharmac funds HIV medications on the basis that they are only available to people whose immune systems are in danger of being overwhelmed by the virus and who would clearly benefit from being medicated. For some years this funded start point has been when people's CD4 count, an indication of the robustness of their immune system, dropped to 350. Last year the threshold was raised to 500 and Pharmac agreed in principle to do away with it completely. But it has yet to make the money available to fund that change. The NZAF's public call follows the release of findings from an international trial on the benefits of an early start to treatment. “The START trial has found a 53% reduction in serious illness or death for people who begin using medications early,” says Shaun Robinson, Executive Director, NZ AIDS Foundation. “What is more, HIV medication reduces the level of HIV virus in a person’s blood which significantly lowers their ability to infect others. With around 100 new HIV infections occurring in New Zealand each year it is in everyone’s interest to make access to medications as easy as possible.” The new evidence of significant improvements for people’s health and the secondary benefit of reduced ability to pass on HIV will both provide overall cost benefits for the health system. “One new HIV infection prevented saves $1 million over a person’s lifetime. It makes economic sense to fund immediate access to medications as well as being the right thing for people’s health,” says Robinson. Not all people newly-diagnosed with HIV, most of whom in New Zealand are gay and bisexual men, would immediately start medications as there are issues to consider such as side-effects, toxicity and long-term health dangers from the powerful chemicals the medications are based on. “The decision to start medications should continue to be one made between the individual and their doctor,” says Robinson. “There are side effects and people need to be ready to commit to a life-long process of taking the medications every day. He also points to the benefits to the government's coffers of having those with HIV on medications. “One new HIV infection prevented saves $1 million over a person’s lifetime. It makes economic sense to fund immediate access to medications as well as being the right thing for people’s health,” said Mr Robinson. The evidence is now clear that there is no clinical or financial reason to have a clinical threshold set by Pharmac that stops patients and doctors making the decision to start medications early."
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Friday, 29th May 2015 - 9:33am