Ugandan officials are launching a project to use biometrics for identity verification of HIV/AIDS patients. Called Monitoring and Evaluation Technical Support, or METS, it’s part of a five-year project funded by the Centers for Disease Control, and its aim is to more accurately track HIV/AIDS patients so that healthcare services and resources can be administrated more effectively.
One basic benefit expected from the project is to get an accurate view of how many individuals in the country are living with HIV/AIDS. But it will also help to curb fraud, with authorities asserting that some HIV/AIDS patients mislead healthcare service providers in order to obtain extra medications. Now, fingerprint data will be used and shared between clinics to ensure that patients get only the medications to which they are entitled, which should in turn help authorities to more effectively manage resources.
The move may reflect government officials’ growing interest in biometric technology, given that thumbprint scanners were ordered for use in voter verification in Uganda’s recent election.
State officials stand to gain from the valuable epidemiological data and other benefits to be had from the proposed HIV/AIDS patient identification system.
Source: The Monitor via AllAfrica
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April 25, 2016 – by Alex Perala
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