Initiative to boost male circumcision in South Africa

The Department of Health (DOH) of South Africa’s Western Cape Province and a managed care firm have joined forces to expand access to voluntary medical male circumcision (VMMC), Independent Online reports. Metropolitan Health Risk Management will cover the cost of VMMC services in employer-based medical schemes, and the Center for HIV and AIDS Prevention (CHAPS) will train general practitioners in those schemes to provide VMMC. This work is part of a public-private partnership among the national DOH, the US Agency for International Development mission in South Africa, Metropolitan Health Risk Management, and CHAPS to scale up VMMC services with $5 million funding from the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, according to a press release (Independent Online, 27 February 2015).