Chinese health ministry signs HIV agreement with Clinton foundation

The Chinese government has entered into a partnership with Bill Clinton's private foundation to deliver treatment and care for HIV patients in China, the foundation announced Thursday. The William J. Clinton Presidential Foundation's HIV/AIDS Initiative also will help China develop better systems of care for the disease. "I congratulate China for undertaking this aggressive and timely effort to address the AIDS epidemic," Clinton said. The former president has made treatment of AIDS around the world a central aim of his post-presidency. His foundation works to buy equipment, train medical personnel, and funnel antiretroviral medicines into 18 countries in Africa, Asia, and the Caribbean. Ira Magaziner, chairman of the foundation's Boston-based AIDS division, signed an agreement Thursday with Chinese vice minister of health Wang Longde in Beijing, the foundation said. The foundation will be working with Chinese government officials to expand treatment programs in the country and to improve HIV prevention efforts. The health ministry authorized the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences to discuss the details of its AIDS plans with Clinton foundation officials. The United Nations estimates that there are currently 1 million HIV-positive people in China, and that number could grow to 20 million by 2010 if comprehensive prevention programs aren't soon launched. (AP)