Ministry releases ARVs amid funding uncertainty

The Ministry of Health has released, for distribution, a new consignment of vital HIV commodities for the 1.4 million Kenyans living with HIV.

The release comes amid fears of a potential shortage occasioned by a funding shortfall resulting from the US government's suspension of various health programmes and compounded by the Kenyan government's tight fiscal wiggle room.

"We are pleased to report that we have secured stock levels of key ARVs and testing kits, with supplies ranging from several months to close to two years," said Health CS Barasa when she led the flagging off of the commodities.

The new stocks supplied through the Mission for Essential Drugs (MEDS), in partnership with KEMSA, include a supply of Tenofovir/Lamivudine/Dolutegravir (TLD) meant for both children and adults to control and reduce risk of virus transmission.

While slightly over 2 million packs of these are lying in KEMSA stores, a further 4.8 million is expected by June this year, offering a guarantee of 11 months of supply.

Nevirapine suspension for infants and Abacavir/Lamivudine dispersible tablets have also been released with stocks expected to last for the next 11 and 18 months respectively.

The government has equally procured HIV testing commodities including trinscreen, test screens for adults, Early Infants Diagnostic (EID), and viral load tests expected to last between 9 to twenty-one months.

To prevent further sexual transmissions, the government has ordered 28 million pieces of male condoms with the procurement of another 93 million in the pipeline. An approximated 1.6 million pieces are still in supply.

Barasa insists that Kenya will win the fight against HIV through an efficient and equitable platform such as President Ruto's Taifacare UHC plan.

"I am confident that our country can sustainably manage the HIV response through local innovations and strong leadership," she said.