3 days ago
10
Upgrade to High-Speed Internet for only ₱1499/month!
Enjoy up to 100 Mbps fiber broadband, perfect for browsing, streaming, and gaming.
Visit Suniway.ph to learn
MANILA, Philippines — As confirmed HIV infections continue to climb, averaging 56 new cases daily, the Department of Health (DOH) has proposed declaring a national public health emergency.
In a statement on Tuesday, June 3, the DOH reported a 44% year-on-year increase in HIV cases from January to April, with 6,703 new infections recorded. This has brought the total number of people living with HIV in the country to 150,433 as of April.
In line with recent studies, Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa said the Philippines has been identified as the fastest-growing HIV epidemic in the Western Pacific Region.
Daily HIV cases more than doubled from 21 in 2014 to 48 in 2024. They now average 56 a day, according to DOH data.
The chart shows the number of newly diagnosed HIV cases from 1984 to April 2025.
Department of Health
Higher incidence among youth. What’s worse, however, is that many of the new cases involve individuals aged 15 to 25, with the youngest confirmed case being a 12-year-old from Palawan, he added.
The DOH has actually observed this shift in the age demographic of HIV diagnoses over the past two decades. Since 2006, the most affected group has moved from 35-49 years old to 25-34 years old, signaling a younger population at risk.
Cumulatively, four in five of the diagnosed cases are reportedly younger than 35. Of these, half are between 25 and 34 years old, while 30% are aged 15 to 24.
The stacked column chart illustrates the distribution of diagnosed HIV cases across age groups from 1984 to April 2025, with the recent trend showing more among younger groups.
Department of Health
“Ang maganda [ay] magkaroon tayo ng public health emergency, national emergency for HIV dahil magtutulong-tulong ang buong lipunan. A whole-of-society and whole-of-government [approach] can help us in this campaign na mapababa ang new cases of HIV,” Herbosa said.
(It would be good to declare a public health emergency, a national emergency, for HIV because it would encourage the entire society to work together. A whole-of-society and whole-of-government approach can help us in this campaign to reduce new HIV cases.)
More urgent than mpox? Although more confirmed mpox cases have been reported recently, Herbosa said the real threat lies in the rising number of HIV infections and urged greater attention to the growing epidemic.
“Ang malaking problema po natin ay hindi monkeypox kundi ang paglaganap ng HIV (Our big problem right now is not monkeypox, but the spread of HIV),” he said.
Under the Constitution, only the president has the authority to declare a national public health emergency.
What is HIV?
HIV, or human immunodeficiency virus, attacks the body’s immune system by targeting cells that fight infection. This weakens the body’s defenses, making a person more vulnerable to other illnesses and diseases.
The virus is most commonly transmitted through unprotected sex or contact with the bodily fluids of someone with HIV, such as through shared needles.
The DOH found that sexual contact remains the leading mode of HIV transmission, with 83% of recent cases involving male-to-male intercourse. This was followed by cases of males having sex with both males and females.
Before 2007, most cases involved male-to-female transmission.
The stacked chart shows the distribution of diagnosed HIV cases by mode of transmission, with most recent cases resulting from sexual contact between males.
Department of Health
Prevention and treatment. While there is still no cure, HIV is manageable with antiretroviral therapy (ART), which reduces the viral load in the blood to undetectable levels and significantly lowers the risk of transmission.
Two other preventive options are pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP), which are medicines taken by people at risk of HIV. When taken properly, it can prevent infection from sex or injection drug use.
If left untreated, HIV can progress to AIDS, or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. It is the most advanced stage of an HIV infection when the immune system is severely damaged.
Free consultation, test, therapy
Herbosa stressed the need to ramp up HIV testing, prevention and treatment efforts, especially since HIV is now treatable and no longer a death sentence.
He said self-testing kits are available in the Philippines and should be more widely used. However, this must go hand in hand with breaking the stigma around sex, more so with same-sex intercourse.
Herbosa also urged the public to practice safe sex by using condoms, lubricants and PrEP.
Those who use self-test kits can get a free confirmatory test at DOH treatment hubs, he added. Antiretroviral therapy is also covered by the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth).
DOH spokesperson Albert Domingo also told reporters that the health secretary is involved in international engagements as a member of the UNAIDS Board to "secure international support and resources.”
This includes stigma-free primary care HIV screening, testing and maintenance treatment.
There are now 299 DOH-accredited HIV treatment hubs and care facilities across the Philippines as of March 2025. Here's where to find them, along with the services they offer and how to get in touch.
