HIV test to be made mandatory before surgeries, NA panel told

Federal Health Minister Mustafa Kamal has announced that HIV screening test will be made mandatory before any surgical procedure as part of new measures to control the spread of the disease.

The development came during a meeting of the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on National Health, chaired by Mahesh Kumar Malani. During the session, health officials informed the committee that the minister had requested the HIV/AIDS briefing be held in-camera, a proposal that was opposed by committee members.

According to the briefing, the number of registered HIV cases across Pakistan has reached around 84,000. Of these, approximately 61,000 patients are currently undergoing treatment, while more than 16,000 have been lost to follow-up during the course of their treatment.

Health officials told the committee that the apparent rise in cases is largely due to expanded screening efforts.

The meeting was also informed that in 2020, around 38,000 individuals were screened at 49 centres. By 2025, the number of testing facilities had increased to 97, where more than 300,000 people were tested, with over 14,000 cases returning positive results.

Committee members pointed to the reuse of syringes as a major factor contributing to the spread of HIV.

Speaking during the meeting, the health minister said he had recently met the prime minister to discuss the issue. He added that a decision had been taken to ban the reuse of all types of syringes, including 10cc syringes, and to introduce mandatory AIDS screening prior to surgeries.

Kamal further said that Pakistan is receiving $65 million from the Global Fund to help combat HIV. However, he noted that only $3.9 million of this amount has been allocated to the Ministry of Health, while $61 million is being provided to two non-governmental organisations.

The committee recommended that all relevant institutions be invited to brief members in the next meeting for a more comprehensive review of the situation.