National Media Alert: More than 600 people march to demand 6 month supply of ARVs for people with HIV

WHAT: On Sunday 1 December, the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) will lead hundreds of people in a march to demand that all stable people living with HIV urgently start getting a 6 month supply of ARVs. We are marching to the government’s World AIDS Day event taking place in East London. The Deputy President, the Minister of Health, and many more officials from the health department will be in attendance. 

WHY: South Africa has the biggest HIV burden in the world and currently around 2 million people living with HIV are still not on lifesaving HIV treatment. Many people having started on treatment and then stopped, often because of long waiting times, poor conditions, and the unwelcoming environment in our clinics. Yet a simple solution exists.

For people who are collecting ARVs to simply get a longer supply of medication. This means less trips back to the clinic to collect refills, making it easier to stay on treatment. It reduces the cost of getting to and hours spent waiting at clinics every year. It reduces waiting times for all public healthcare users and decongests our clinics, reducing the overall burden on clinic staff. 

Based on strong evidence that longer ARV refills make it easier to stay on treatment, the World Health Organisation (WHO) says that preferably people doing well on treatment should be getting a 6 month supply. This means going to your clinic just twice a year for clinical review, rescript, and getting your next 6 month supply of ARVs. Many other African countries have rolled this out, and by June this year 6.7 million people were already getting a 6 month supply. 

South Africa’s national guidelines were revised last year and made 3 month supply of ARVs the new standard for people to collect. They also allow for people to get a 6 month supply. However, it is now December 2024 and while positively many people are getting a 3 month supply, there is no plan at all for implementation of 6 month supply. 

TAC is marching on World AIDS Day to demand that the National Department of Health urgently finalises its planning and forecasting processes to ensure that all stable people get a 6 month supply of ARVs if they want it. The department should publicly commit to this on World AIDS Day, and ensure that it starts being rolled out by the end of 2024, with at least 30% of people stable on their treatment getting a 6 month supply by end June 2025.

WHEN & WHERE:

Sunday 1 December

Gathering | 8am – 9am — Sihlanguleb.B Best Bake Pty Ltd, Mdantsane https://bit.ly/49fjuZJ 

March | 9am – 10.30am

Programme & handover of memorandum | 10.30am – 11.30am — Sisa Dukashe Stadium, Mdantsane https://bit.ly/3V8Fyzi 

Photos available on request

#MoreARVPillsNow

Contact: 

Ngqabutho Mpofu: 072 225 9675 | ngqabutho.mpofu@tac.org.za 

Xabisa Qwabe: 076 850 6736 | xabisa.qwabe@tac.org.za (contact at the march)