The number of overseas Filipino workers getting infected by human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) continues to rise.
During the celebration of World AIDS Day on December 1, ACTS-OFW Partylist noted that the number of OFWs who were tested reactive to HIV has reached the 6,000 mark, reported GMA News.
Bertiz noted that with a total of 6,135 cases, OFWs now make up 10% of the cases in the National HIV and AIDS Registry which were recorded from January 1984 to June 2018.
Due to the increasing number, the partylist wanted to spread the message of awareness and prevention among the community.
“Fighting AIDS through greater awareness and prevention is a top priority for us because one in 10 Filipinos living with HIV is a migrant worker,” the partylist said in a statement.
“OFWs are especially at risk because once they are exposed to foreign cultures, they tend to let their guard down,” it added.
According to the report, 697 OFWs were newly diagnosed with HIV from January to September 2018, which is 13.7% higher compared to the same time period last year.
Out of the 6,135 OFWs who have HIV, 5,280 or 86 percent, are male with the median age of 32.
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.
Photo credits: AG Scientific
