Dying with AIDS in Costa Rica. Access to care and treatment
Stern, R.
Aidslink Eastern Central and Southern Africa 45: 14-15
1997
ISSN/ISBN: 0856-3969 PMID: 12292735 Document Number: 269159
Costa Rica, with a population of 3 million people, has approximately 1200 cumulative diagnosed cases of AIDS. 70% of AIDS cases in the country have been among gay men. About 500 people with AIDS (PWA) are still alive and it is estimated that just as many people may be asymptomatic carriers of HIV. At the cost of $800-1000 per month per person, approximately 700,000 people, mostly in the US and Europe, are being treated with combination drug therapy capable of managing AIDS as a fairly curable chronic illness. However, most people in Costa Rica, where the per capita annual income is $2500, cannot afford to pay for such therapy. Arguing that the drugs are too expensive, the government has not approved any of the retroviral medications for general use in its socialized medical system which otherwise guarantees appropriate medical treatment to its citizens. The pharmaceutical companies which distribute the medications in Costa Rica, Roche and Bristol Meyers, refuse to provide patients with either free or significantly discounted drugs. The author discusses social discrimination against gay people in Costa Rica and describes attempts made to negotiate drug supplies for PWA with the government and pharmaceutical companies.