Canada’s overall rate of new HIV infections is lower than the global average.
That said, HIV has reached epidemic levels in key populations across the country.
In certain communities, the virus is more prevalent than in countries hardest hit by the HIV epidemic.
In Saskatchewan’s Ahtahkakoop First Nation, for example, 3.5 per cent of the population is living with HIV.
In Toronto, an estimated one of five gay and bisexual men is HIV-positive. And in Vancouver’s Downtown East Side, an estimated 27 per cent of people who inject drugs are HIV-positive.
At this year’s International AIDS Society conference in Vancouver, we heard success stories from around the world as countries scale up their efforts to meet new testing and treatment targets set by UNAIDS, the UN agency responsible for coordinating the global HIV response.
Modelling studies show that achieving these targets will result in the end of the epidemic spread of HIV by 2030.
Canada may be able to learn from other countries that have a strong focus on testing, including the use of new testing technologies and strategies.
By similarly expanding access to testing, we can help diagnose more people living with HIV, giving them an opportunity to start treatment and prevent transmission to others.
With no national pharmacare plan, access to treatment is inconsistent for Canadians with HIV. In fact, HIV treatment access is estimated to be greater in Botswana, where a national program provides free treatment to two-thirds of people with HIV in the country.
And partly due to the fact that treatment also greatly reduces the chance of transmitting HIV to others, new infections in Botswana fell 70 per cent over the 10 years following the introduction of their program.
This World AIDS Day (Dec. 1) let’s think about creating our own ambitious strategy to address HIV in Canada.
Laurie Edmiston is executive director of CATIE, Canada’s source for HIV and hepatitis C information.
