ISLAMABAD:
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday ordered authorities to ensure comprehensive screening of all patients in public hospitals to rule out hepatitis and HIV, reiterating the government’s determination to provide the best health services to citizens.
The directive was issued as the Prime Minister chaired a review meeting on issues related to the Ministry of National Health Services, during which he reiterated that providing the best possible healthcare to Pakistani citizens remained one of the government’s top priorities.
According to the statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), the Prime Minister said the government was ready to do everything, overcome all obstacles and make all necessary sacrifices to save even one precious life.
He also tasked the Ministry of National Health Services to develop, in coordination with provincial governments, an integrated system for timely reporting of hepatitis, AIDS and other diseases. “Only through rapid identification can these diseases be completely eradicated,” he observed.
The Prime Minister further directed the Ministry of Health to accelerate the implementation of the “Prime Minister’s Hepatitis Control Program” in collaboration with the provinces, focusing on screening, testing and treatment.
To curb the spread of viral diseases, he ordered the nationwide use of auto-disable (AD) syringes. He directed the Pakistan Drug Regulatory Authority and other relevant agencies to ensure a complete ban on the reuse of syringes.
During the meeting, the Prime Minister was briefed on the ongoing measures to eliminate polio, hepatitis and AIDS. Officials informed him that 98 antiretroviral therapy centers had been established in the country’s main hospitals for the treatment of AIDS, and that they planned to increase this number to 164 within a year.
The meeting was also told that AIDS testing facilities had been set up at all international airports for illegal immigrants returning to the country.
The officials further said that a pilot phase of the Prime Minister’s National Program for Hepatitis C Elimination would be launched soon in Islamabad, Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan.
NA panel alarmed
A parliamentary panel on Tuesday sounded the alarm over the HIV/AIDS situation, rejected calls for a closed-door briefing and demanded transparency as officials revealed more than 84,000 cases have been recorded nationwide, with thousands of patients lost to follow-up.
The National Assembly Standing Committee on National Health Services, chaired by Mahesh Kumar Malani, said the issue was urgent, sensitive and required coordinated national action.
Health Ministry officials informed the committee that registered HIV cases had reached 84,000, of which around 61,000 patients were currently under treatment, while over 16,000 patients had dropped out of treatment and could no longer be traced.
The ministry attributed the increase in reported cases largely to expanded testing.
He said that in 2020, around 38,000 people were screened in 49 centers across the country, while in 2025, the number of screening centers increased to 97, with over 374,000 tests conducted and over 14,000 positive cases detected.
