Russian people living with HIV will soon be able to adopt children for the first time.
The ban will be scrapped as part of a new state strategy to combat the disease, Russia's Kommersant newspaper reported Friday.
“Adoption is completely possible if a person with HIV is receiving therapy,” an unnamed source close to the government told Kommersant. “There are also children waiting to be adopted who have HIV themselves. Why wouldn't a person with HIV be able to adopt such a child?”
The changes will be made no later than the second quarter of 2018, Kommersant reported.
Russia's latest strategy to eradicate HIV, which was signed by Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev on April 20, will focus on working with at-risk groups, as well as spreading HIV awareness and fighting discrimination. Details have not yet officially been made available to the public.
The proposals will also push for a new law making it illegal for Russians advocate boycotts of HIV testing and treatment, Kommersant reported.
The newspaper did not specify whether laws banning people with HIV from serving in the Russian army, or forbidding foreigners with HIV from living in Russia, would also be scrapped.
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