News from the Yunnan Provincial Health Department is that Yunnan Province has issued a policy to designate hospitals where pregnant women with HIV can bear their children.

YPHD has issued a circular, asking health departments above the county level to set a non-profit Obstetrical Department to provide service to HIV pregnant women. Zhang Min, a representative from YPHD, says that the staff at these Obstetrical Departments have undergo special training and awarded a qualification certificate.

Apart from providing childbearing service to this special group of pregnant women, the designated hospitals shall also work to prevent the transmission of the disease from the mother to the child and report the relevant information to the local women and children healthcare departments, as well as to carry out education on HIV transmission between mother and child.

Statistics from the Yunnan Provincial HIV Prevention Department show that the situation of HIV transmission between mother and child in the province is becoming more distressing. In 2006, 0.23% of pregnant women showed positive for HIV, and the proportion has now reportedly risen to 1%-2% in some areas.

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