PrEP to be made available across England

The Department of Health and Social Care has announced that local authorities will receive £16 million in 2020 to 2021 to deliver the preventative HIV treatment PrEP.

It will ensure that anyone who is at a high risk of contracting HIV will receive PrEP from their local sexual health clinic to reduce their risk of getting the virus. PrEP is currently available in England through the three-year PrEP impact trial, which has recruited over 20,000 participants.The new £16 million funding will also enable people on the trial to continue to use PrEP when the trial ends.

Taken daily, PrEP is proven to be highly effective at preventing HIV transmission from sex or injection drug use. Studies have shown that PrEP reduces the risk of getting HIV from sex by about 99 per cent when taken daily.

NHS England will cover the costs of the drug and local authorities will be supported with £16 million funding to deliver services. PrEP is highly effective in preventing transmission of HIV.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said: “I remember when HIV was a death sentence – and still today, it has a devastating impact on so many lives across the country. While it is encouraging to see HIV transmissions continue to fall across the UK, I am determined to do more, and end HIV transmission. So we are rolling out PrEP and making it available across the country – with evidence showing it almost completely eradicates the chances of getting HIV. This will benefit tens of thousands of people’s lives, and drive us towards our ambition of zero HIV transmissions in this decade.”

An estimated 103,800 people were living with HIV in the UK in 2018, with 7,500 of those unaware of their infection.