The Rudd government will this week outline a $25 million strategy to tackle sexually transmitted diseases such as HIV, which is on the rise for the first time in five years.HIV diagnoses in Australia increased 8.2 per cent from 2010 to 2011, the most recent period for which national data is available. Data for NSW released last month showed a 24 per cent increase in diagnoses between 2011 and 2012.
Meanwhile, the incidence of other sexually transmitted infections has risen rapidly. Nationally, the annual number of reported diagnoses of chlamydia almost tripled between 2002 and 2011.
And more than 220,000 Australians are living with chronic hepatitis C infection - predominantly through sharing needles - while more than 200,000 live with hepatitis B, which carries a risk of serious liver disease.
Federal Health Minister Tanya Plibersek said the rise in HIV was ''small but steady'' and the increase in other infections was ''very concerning''.
"Existing public health messages around blood-borne virus and STI [sexually transmissible infections] prevention, including safe sex, seem not to be getting through to some groups,'' she said.
The $25 million was included in the budget, but the program was not announced. It will be detailed in the pre-election fiscal outlook on Tuesday. The money will be spent on a range of initiatives including:
- Tackling sexually transmissible infections in indigenous communities through culturally-specific education programs;
- Using so-called point of care HIV testing - which can be conducted by a GP - to encourage more regular testing for high risk groups such as gay men.
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