“HIV+Hepatitis Policy Institute fully supports the PrEP Access and Coverage Act of 2021 and urges Congress to swiftly pass it. It addresses many of the coverage and affordability issues responsible for low uptake of PrEP and will be essential as new PrEP drugs become available. While there are government programs for people living with HIV and other prevention programs, there isn’t a comprehensive nationwide program for PrEP,” said Carl Schmid, Executive Director of the HIV+Hepatitis Policy Institute.
Hopeful Signs of Progress in Ending HIV in the United States: New Biden Strategic Plan & Congressional Bills to Establish National PrEP Programs
“As we mark World AIDS Day on December 1st, despite all the recent setbacks due to the ongoing COVID-19 epidemic, there is hope on the horizon for ending HIV in the United States,” said Carl Schmid, executive director of the HIV+Hepatitis Policy Institute. “President Biden is set to release an updated National HIV/AIDS Strategic Plan and several bills have been or are about to be introduced in Congress to establish a national PrEP program to prevent HIV. Additionally, Congress is poised to increase funding for domestic HIV programs for the year ahead. Taken together, these are hopeful signs. However, for these well-intentioned plans to be implemented, much work still needs to occur.”
PrEP4All and the HIV+Hepatitis Policy Institute Lead National call to end ban on PrEP services spending with CDC grant funding
Today, PrEP4ALL with HIV+Hepatitis Policy Institute submitted a letter of over 60 signatures of leading HIV organizations calling on the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) and the White House Office of National AIDS Policy (ONAP) to request the CDC to reverse its decision to prohibit the use of CDC prevention funds to pay for the additional costs of PrEP, including provider visits, labs for screening and monitoring.
Federal Government Issues Guidance to Insurers on Coverage of HIV Prevention Drugs
Today, the federal government issued guidance to insurers to remind them of their obligation to cover pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), which are drugs that prevent HIV, at no cost to their beneficiaries. The guidance, in the form of an FAQ, also clarifies that associated services with PrEP, such as provider visits and HIV, hepatitis, and STD testing along with other laboratory tests, must also be covered with no patient cost-sharing. This follows previous guidance for the coverage of other preventive services that have associated services and costs, such as colonoscopies.
House Supports Significant Funding Increases for Domestic HIV Programs: Minimal Increase for Hepatitis Programs
The US House of Representatives is proposing to significantly increase funding to continue to ramp up efforts to end HIV in the United States. In addition to an increase of $245 million for domestic HIV testing, prevention, and treatment programs as part of the Ending the HIV Epidemic initiative, which matches the amount proposed in President Joe Biden’s budget, the Appropriations Committee in its FY22 Labor, HHS appropriations bill is proposing an $146 million increase to the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program, (+$100 million over Biden’s budget) and $190 million more for NIH AIDS Research that was not included in the president’s budget. The House is only including an increase of $5 million for CDC’s hepatitis division for a total of $44.5 million.