As part of the national effort to end the AIDS epidemic by 2030, the Bali Health Agency is offering free HIV tests and counseling for soon-to-be married couples on the Island of Gods.
The agency’s head I Nyoman Gede Anom said yesterday that it began publicly disseminating information about free HIV tests for soon-to-be married couples two years ago.
Balinese Hindus, he said, have different marriage customs to people in other provinces, in that couples would mostly perform traditional wedding ceremonies first and only later officially register their marriages. Some only register after the birth of a child.
“For [Indonesian] Muslims, for example, marriage certificates will only be issued after [couples receive] tetanus shots and HIV/AIDS tests,” he said.
In addition to free HIV/AIDS tests and counseling for brides and grooms, the Bali Health Agency also plans to raise awareness and normalize the procedures, conveying to the public that positive results only means taking pills regularly afterwards.
Commenting on the island’s supply of antiretroviral (ARV) drugs, Anom said that Bali currently has enough to supply demand for the next six months or up to July. Records show that there are approximately 11,000 HIV/AIDS patients registered on the island.
