HIV explosion in Romanian prisons: Drug users are the most affected population
There is an accelerated rise in the HIV prevalence in prisoners in Romania. Out of the 321 HIV positive prisoners in 2013, 271 are people who use drugs, 127 of whom were registered in 2013. For now, only 15 prisoners have access to OST.
9 Oct 2014According to the National Administration of Penitentiaries data, requested by the Romanian Harm Reduction Network there is an accelerated rise in the HIV prevalence in prisoners in Romania. Out of the 321 HIV positive prisoners in 2013, 271 are people who use drugs, 127 of whom were registered in 2013. As seen in the chart below, the number of new HIV positive cases per year has increased drastically between 2012 and 2013:
For the first two quarters of 2014, the number of HIV positive prisoners is 330, out of which 231 are people who use drugs. The number of new cases in this span of time is 28, out of which 26 are people who use drugs. The efficiency of needle and syringe programs (SEP) and opioid substitution therapy (OST) in reducing HIV incidence is a proven fact. For now, only 15 prisoners have access to OST.
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