The head of the Saskatoon Tribal Council calls the rising rates of HIV in the province a "crisis" facing First Nations and Metis people

The Canadian Press

 

The number of people testing positive for HIV in Saskatchewan is more than double the national average.

 

A spokeswoman with the province’s Health Ministry says there were 900 HIV-positive cases and 250 instances of full-blown AIDS in Saskatchewan in 2009. Geraldine Arcand says the rising rates of HIV means it’s time for First Nations leaders to step up to the plate and do something about it.

 

Provincial officials say 75 per cent of new cases in the province can be linked to injection drug use.

 

Dr. Moira McKinnon, the province’s chief medical health officer, says they’re modelling their provincial program after a similar one in British Columbia.

 

She says it focuses on prevention, harm reduction, community engagement and public education.

 

HIV currently costs the health care system about 40 million dollars annually.