The Ministry of Health (MOH) has begun a nationwide program to distribute new drugs among AIDS patients, a senior official said yesterday.

The second-line medicines - three anti-retroviral drugs - are being distributed free among full-blown AIDS patients, said Hao Yang, deputy director of the ministry's disease control bureau.

The second-line regimen includes two new drugs, TDF and Kaletra - as well as 3TC, which is also part of first-line drugs. All these medicines are imported and cost between 12,000 ($1,760) and 15,000 yuan a patient a year.