TB death victims to fall to less than 5% by 2016

BANGKOK, September 23 (TNA) - Thai health officials are seeking to cut back on death rates from tuberculosis to less than five percent by 2016. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), Thailand is currently one of the top 22 high-burden countries for tuberculosis, with about 120,000 TB patients reported in 2011. Doctor Pornthep Siriwanarangsan, director-general of Disease Control Department, adds that there were up to 11,000 deaths that year. Thai Health Minister Wittaya Buranasiri says poverty, labour migration, and HIV outbreaks in the last few years have contributed most to TB cases in Thailand, saying the only way to reduce them was through greater health care access and public outreach programmes. (TNA)