Around 80,000 people tested positive for HIV in China in 2012, and 60,000 of them qualified for free medical treatment based on their CD4 cell count. The costs, which the CDC estimates at around 300 to 400 million yuan, will rise if China decides to expand treatment to all carriers.

Zhang Beichuan, a prominent sexologist and AIDS prevention expert, said medical outreach has yet to tackle patient compliance, which is a fundamental issue that impacts the effectiveness of any AIDS program.

Health authorities in Zhongshan county have also voiced similar concerns, noting that some HIV-positive people are not committed to treatment and high population mobility poses challenges to monitoring.

"It could take as long as 10 years to diagnose AIDS after one is infected. How do we guarantee the carrier will stick to the regimen during this period?" Zhang said.

With these factors in mind, many analysts have urged local authorities planning to run the program to tailor it to suit the unique challenges facing their regions, because merely copying Zhongshan's practice may not guarantee comparable success.