Health Services and HIV Treatment

The issue of providing anti-retroviral (ARV) treatment in a public health programme is a vexed one. While there are at least four public interest litigations in India petitioning for the state to provide ARV therapy to all who need it, there are those who point out the drawbacks of depending on ARVs for dealing with the problem. These complex issues need to be addressed squarely. The challenge is to develop systems for provision of anti-retroviral drugs that heed all the warnings and minimise the drawbacks.