MANILA, Sept. 29 (Xinhua) -- At least 31 Filipinos are infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) each day in the Philippines, government data showed with the Department of Health (DOH) voicing alarm over the spread in the Philippines of HIV that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS).
Health Secretary Francisco Duque said the number of Filipinos affected by HIV and AIDS "have drastically increased over the last couple of years." "Just over the past decade, the average rate of new HIV cases in the Philippines has grown from one per day to 31 per day. And this figure does not include undocumented cases," Duque said.
Duque said the Philippines currently has the highest percent of increase of new HIV cases in the Asia-Pacific region from 2010 to 2016, at 133 percent. The first case of HIV infection in the Philippines was reported in 1984. Since then, the DOH said there have been 56,275 confirmed HIV cases reported.
The DOH said sexual contact among males who have sex with males (MSM) was the predominant mode of transmission among males with 84 percent accounting for the total transmission, followed by male-female sex at 11 percent, and sharing of infected needles.
"More than anyone else, we, at DOH, take this very seriously, that's why we've decided to partner with people and organizations that will allow us to address the root cause of this growing epidemic," Duque said.
