ACTS-OFW Representative Aniceto Bertiz III is encouraging returning overseas Filipino workers to get themselves tested for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and other sexually-transmitted diseases.
Bertiz said on Sunday that OFWs returning to the Philippines, especially those who believe they have engaged in high-risk sexual activities, should get themselves tested due to the significant rise in the cases of HIV infections among OFWs, reported Manila Bulletin.
According to the report, 451 OFWs were newly diagnosed with HIV during the first half of 2018, which is 14.4% higher compared to the same time period last year.
Bertiz also noted that OFWs now make up 10% of the cases in the National HIV and AIDS Registry which were recorded from January 1984 to June 2018.
HIV is a human-to-human transmitted virus that attacks and weakens a person’s immune system. AIDS, on the other hand, is the progression of the HIV infection in the body which occurs when the immune system is already weak making it prone to opportunistic infections, such as tuberculosis and pneumonia.
“The DOH has 60 HIV treatment hubs across the country plus 33 primary care facilities that provide outpatient care services to returning OFWs and other citizens living with the virus,” Bertiz said.
The lawmaker also said that a total 5,889 OFWs have HIV; 5,063, or 86 percent, of which were male with the median age of 32.
Bertiz also sought help from the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) to raise awareness on HIV/AIDS among OFWs.
Photo credits: AG Scientific
