Tibet Bids Farewell to LeprosyOccurrence rate of leprosy in Tibet has dropped to under 0.002 percent, which, by the standard of the World Health Organization, means the disease, which has ravaged the region for over 1,400 years, has been basically eradicated.Tibet used to register the highest occurrence rate of leprosy in China, as its vast number of farmers and herdsmen were desperately short of medicine. In the past two decades, local authorities have established leprosy clinics at regional, district and county levels and started organizational and systematic prevention and treatment. Some 3,200 lepers have been cured over the years, incomplete statistics show. Last year, 23 households of lepers were resettled in Qushui County. In addition to be provided with free housing and subsidies as pocket money, all of them were ensured a year-long supply of food, meat, ghee, and other daily necessities. Monthly check-ups and medicine were provided regularly, and the patients' children were sent to school. |
| People's Daily Online --- http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/ |