Without USAID funding, Ukraine and 7 other countries may run out of HIV medicines
18 March 12:56
The Trump administration’s decision to suspend US foreign aid has led to “significant problems” in the supply of HIV medicines in eight countries, and these vital drugs may soon run out. Reuters reports this with reference to a statement by the World Health Organization, "Komersant Ukrainian" informs.
It is noted that these are Haiti, Kenya, Lesotho, South Sudan, Burkina Faso, Mali, Nigeria and Ukraine. These countries may run out of HIV medicines in the coming months.
“Disruptions to HIV programs could wipe out 20 years of progress,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at a press conference.
He added that this could lead to more than 10 million additional HIV cases and three million HIV-related deaths.
It is noted that efforts to fight HIV, polio, malaria and tuberculosis have been affected by the suspension of US foreign aid, which was introduced by President Donald Trump shortly after he took office in January.
The WHO Director-General said that the United States is responsible for ending direct funding. In his opinion, this could be done in a more systematic and humane way, allowing countries to find alternative sources of funding.
According to the Ministry of Health in Ukraine, as of December 2024, 137 thousand people were under medical supervision for HIV. In the first 9 months of last year, 9,653 thousand new cases of HIV were detected, one in four of which were AIDS cases, and AIDS caused 899 deaths. On average, almost a thousand people are diagnosed with HIV infection every month, about 900 of them are placed under medical supervision for the first time, and 920 people start antiretroviral therapy for the first time in their lives.
US authorities decide to close more than 80% of USAID programs
The new U.S. administration is officially canceling 83% of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) programs. This was recently announced by Secretary of State Marco Rubio. According to him, this was done after a 6-week review of international assistance programs implemented by USAID.
He also announced his intention to consult with the Congress so that the remaining 18% of programs (approximately 1000 programs) that are being retained could be more effectively managed by the State Department.
The U.S. Secretary of State called the elimination of USAID and the reduction of international support programs a belated and historic reform.
On January 21, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order to temporarily suspend all US assistance programs to foreign countries for 90 days to review whether they meet his policy goals.
