South Africa must offer drug to pregnant women

This article is more than 23 years old.

AIDS activists and doctors today won their battle to force the South African government to provide nevirapine to pregnant mothers who are infected with HIV.

Judge Chris Botha ruled that the government must make nevirapine available to all women giving birth in public hospitals.

The government must also establish a nationwide programme to reduce the rate of mother-to-child HIV transmission.

Glossary

mother-to-child transmission (MTCT)

Transmission of HIV from a mother to her unborn child in the womb or during birth, or to infants via breast milk. Also known as vertical transmission.

Manufacturer Boehringer Ingelheim has offered nevirapine free to developing countries, including South Africa. Nevirapine has been shown to reduce mother to child HIV transmission during labour by around 50 per cent, by giving just one dose to the mother and one dose to the child.

However, the South African government had argued that the drug's safety is unproven.