Ministry of Health explains the decrease in AIDS-HIV cases in Jordan

Jordan

Published: 2017-12-02 10:54

Last Updated: 2024-03-26 12:52


Ministry of Health explains the decrease in AIDS-HIV cases in Jordan
Ministry of Health explains the decrease in AIDS-HIV cases in Jordan

Jordan has one of the lowest rates of AIDS/HIV, both regionally and internationally, according to the Ministry of Health.

This is due to the strict health and safety measures adopted by the ministry.

Recent statistics by the ministry show that about 62 expatriates and 20 Jordanians have been diagnosed with AIDS/HIV in 2017, compared with last year, with a recorded 66 cases for expats and 38 cases for Jordanians.

Seventy percent of those cases were found amongst people aged between 20 and 40-years-old, with a higher percentage of men carrying the disease.

Director of the Directorate of Communicable Diseases at the ministry, Dr. Mohammed Al-Abdallat, said that the reason behind the decrease in the number of infected people in Jordan is due to the fact that expatriates carrying the disease are deported back to their home countries.

Dr. Al-Abdallat added that treatment for AIDS/HIV costs $500 per month, which is offered to citizens, refugees and residents for free.

He noted that there is a specialized center to provide advice and guidance to those infected and to their families, free of charge, as part of the National Program to Fight AIDS, which was established in 1986.

He pointed out that patients are always encouraged to be part of the Jordanian community, without feeling stigmatized.

According to the World Health Organization, 36.7 million people around the world in 2016 were infected with HIV, and 1.8 million people worldwide have recently been infected with HIV.