While the new Budget did not specifically allocate money for a national HIV and Aids treatment plan, there was probably room for such spending, MPs were told on Monday.
This is according to Alison Hickey, the manager of the Institute for Democracy in SA’s (Idasa) research unit on Aids and public finance, who was briefing the National Assembly’s health committee.
”If you’re looking at how much is going to the equitable share (to provinces) it compares fairly reasonable with some of the estimates that have been produced about what a national treatment plan will cost.”
The government had added R13,9-billion to the provinces’ equitable share over and above what was announced last year. Finance Minister Trevor Manuel said last month that R3,3-billion would go to support the further expansion of the enhanced response to HIV and Aids over the next three financial years.
This would include R1,946-billion in conditional grants plus another R1,3-billion which was being sent to provinces via the equitable share, for the intention of financing preventative programmes and ”medically appropriate treatment for HIV/Aids”.
Hickey said there was not a lot of specific information in Manuel’s latest Budget on an antiretroviral programme, although this was ”for good reason”.
”There’s no finalisation of a policy. However, the increase in the equitable share can allow for treatment options, including antiretrovirals, once the policy is finalised or if it becomes approved.”
In addition, if the department of health decided it would like to adopt a national treatment plan, there would be other funding options, Hickey said. One would be to draw on the contingency reserve or to introduce a conditional grant in the adjustment estimates for October.
”So there are options,” she said. – Sapa