The Belgian Federal Public Health Service has created an online resource on the coronavirus (COVID-19) - in NL, FR, ENG, DE: updates, what to do if you are sick, which phone number to call...

Recommendations for all audiences

• Don't kiss
• Do not shake hands
• Wash your hands with soap and water every hour
• Avoid crowds (limiting the number of people also implies limiting the risk. This applies to all types of meetings, including sexual encounters)
• If possible, stay at home and favor telework
• At the slightest new respiratory symptom or fever, it is imperative to put yourself in quarantine at home and contact your doctor, or, if that is not possible, the on-call service of general practitioners (02 / 201.22.22 for Brussels)

Finally, remember that most of these measures are taken for the most vulnerable among us, so do think about the community at large!

At the bottom of the following link: Posters of measures to be taken for display in public places, including workplaces in French, Dutch, Arabic, German, Spanish, Italian, Romanian, Polish, Turkish

Exaequo contacted Gilead and ViiV, two of the main laboratories supplying Belgium with anti-retroviral treatments.

Gilead indicates that the active ingredients of their products do not come from China and that the stocks of their products are large.

ViiV and GSK have received internal confirmation that there are no concerns about supply of ARV treatment. Our contacts also tell us that the Belgian Pharmacists Association (APB) has generally confirmed the same thing (not specifically for ARVs). It would therefore seem that there is no need to worry about a lack of supply.

• Make sure you are up to date with regard to vaccinations (influenza and pneumococcal vaccination)

• There is no known specific impact for people whose viral load is undetectable and the number of CD4 lymphocytes is greater than 200 / mm3

• Anyone living with HIV who has an undetectable viral load or who has a low CD4 count should consider HIV as a "significant co-morbidity" and should avoid public transportation. It is advisable to cancel any travel plan, in particular by avoiding airports and all regions with particularly high concentrations of coronavirus infections.

• Older patients living with HIV (over 70 years of age) may find it harder to reduce their viral load and are more likely to have low CD4 counts.

We highly recommend reading the following articles:

• Note from the Institute of Tropical Medicine in Antwerp (FR, NL)
• Note from the European Clinical Aids Society- ECAS
  
• Note from Terrence Higgins Trust
• Latest advice from Experts about Coronavirus and HIV Buzzfeed
• What You Need to Know About the New Coronavirus and HIV The Body - The HIV and Aids resource
• Fact sheet from The Australian Federation of AIDS organizations