HIV Prevention

The end of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the United States could soon be in sight. While we don’t yet have an HIV vaccine, we have drugs that are nearly 100% effective in preventing people from contracting HIV. These medicines are the cornerstone of a prevention approach called pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PREP. And since the start of 2021, PrEP drugs are supposed to be available at no out-of-pocket cost to most patients with private insurance. Yet obstacles stand in the way of implementing this highly effective prevention tool. These include awareness, stigma, and cost–yes, cost, despite the legal requirement that these drugs be provided free to patients. We must push forward on all these fronts to eliminate this virus once for all.

As 2021 comes to a close, it is a good time to take a moment to reflect on the year and think about the challenges ahead. This year, we commemorated the 40th anniversary of the first cases of what would become known as AIDS, welcomed a budget proposal from President Biden that more than doubled the funding for the Ending the HIV Epidemic in the U.S. initiative and was fully supported by both the House and Senate. President Biden gave his full commitment to ending HIV during a White House World AIDS Day event and released an updated National HIV/AIDS Strategy for the U.S. 2022–2025. We in the HIV community have many reasons to be hopeful, and yet our work is far from done. We must come together as a community focused on ending the HIV epidemic in new and different ways.