Mississippi insurer adds PrEP coverage after complaint, but gaps remain

Insurance Commissioner’s Remarks Raise Discrimination Concerns

Washington DC… In response to a formal complaint filed by the HIV+Hepatitis Policy Institute with the Mississippi Insurance Department, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Mississippi, the largest insurer in the State, has expanded their coverage of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) medications, adding daily oral Descovy and long-acting injectable Apretude.

Just two weeks ago, HIV+Hep filed a complaint accusing Blue Cross Blue Shield of Mississippi (BCBSMS) with violating federal preventive coverage requirements by including on certain formularies only generic oral PrEP, one of four PrEP drugs approved to prevent HIV, and deeming all long-acting injectable regimens for HIV treatment and prevention as “not medically necessary.” 

While BCBSMS is now responding to media inquiries by saying it covers PrEP and the two newer medications, their online preventive care policy indicates that the change just occurred on June 11, 2026, clearly in response to our complaint and the ensuing public reaction. 

As a result of our complaint, BCBSMS is also no longer labeling Apretude, the first long-acting PrEP drug as “not medically necessary.” However, other long-acting drugs, including Cabenuva for HIV treatment and Yeztugo, the newly approved twice-yearly long-acting injectable PrEP drug, are still classified as “not medically necessary” despite their clear advantages.   

“We are pleased that Blue Cross Blue Shield of Mississippi has taken steps to comply with federal preventive coverage requirements by adding these two PrEP drugs. The people of Mississippi deserve the same benefits of innovative HIV prevention tools that other people across the country have access to,” commented Carl Schmid, executive director of the HIV+Hepatitis Policy Institute. “But by excluding other long-acting medications, which are recommended in national HIV treatment and prevention guidelines, Mississippians are still not able to access these highly effective drugs that improve patient adherence.   

The HIV+Hepatitis Policy Institute is also deeply troubled by recent inflammatory remarks made by Mississippi Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney for saying that he will not carry out the law and enforce the preventive health coverage of PrEP without cost-sharing. As reported by the Magnolia Tribune, he characterized PrEP users as people who “have alternative lifestyles” and stated that he cannot endorse people getting no-cost PrEP “so that they can do promiscuous things.” 

“These discriminatory and bigoted remarks do not befit a public official charged with protecting the health and health insurance rights of all Mississippians,” added Schmid. “It is due to attitudes like this that Mississippi has the third-highest HIV diagnosis rate in the country. The Supreme Court has affirmed preventive coverage requirements, and it is the insurance commissioner’s job to enforce the law, not to decide who deserves the protections to which they are entitled. We call on the commissioner to fulfill his obligations under the law and on the federal government to act if he will not,” concluded Schmid. 

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The HIV+Hepatitis Policy Institute is a national, non-profit organization whose mission is to promote quality and affordable healthcare for people living with or at risk of HIV, hepatitis, and other serious and chronic health conditions.