Nicolae Ștefănuță· Verts/ALE

Unverifiable

For 4,000 children, the discovery of a treatment came too late.

Omissions

• The broader context includes that at least 10,000 children contracted HIV in Romania between 1986 and 1991 due to nosocomial infections in hospitals and orphanages, and that approximately 7,000 survived into adulthood due to antiretroviral therapy. The Romanian orphan HIV epidemic was one of the worst pediatric AIDS crises in the world, caused by Ceausescu's policies leading to overcrowded institutions and poor medical practices including unscreened blood transfusions and unsterilized needles.

Sources

• PrimaryHuman Rights Watch - Romania's Failure to Protect and Support Children and Youth Living with HIVBetween 1986 and 1991, at least 10,000 children contracted HIV in Romania due to nosocomial infections in hospitals and orphanages
• PrimaryUNICEF Romania - 30 years of UNICEF in RomaniaMore than 10,000 children had been infected with HIV between 1986 and 1991 following various medical procedures
• AcademicPMC/NIH - Pediatric AIDS in Romania: A Country Faces Its EpidemicIn 1989, a dramatic epidemic of nosocomial HIV infection was discovered predominantly among orphans and hospitalized children in Romania
• SecondaryBBC News - Romania's abandoned HIV babies, 20 years onSeven thousand survived into adulthood thanks to Romania's swift uptake of antiretroviral therapy