Prevent new HIV transmissions by using proven interventions, including pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP).
Pre-exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP)
PrEP is a pill that reduces the risk of getting HIV when taken as prescribed. Less than 20% of the estimated more than 1.2 million Americans who could benefit from PrEP are using this prevention medication. As part of Ending the HIV Epidemic, CDC and federal partners implement a number of strategies to increase access to and use of PrEP:
- CDC and the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) train healthcare providers on prescribing and managing PrEP, and HRSA is increasing the availability of PrEP services in community health centers.
- CDC and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) conduct outreach to people at highest risk so they know PrEP is available and how to access it.
- CDC and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) remove cost barriers and increase access to PrEP nationwide through the Ready, Set, PrEPexternal icon program.
- CDC updates clinical guidelines for prescribing PrEP.
- CDC adds more public and private providers who offer PrEP to its PrEP Locator.
- CDC develops education campaigns for both the public and healthcare providers to combat stigma associated with PrEP use and HIV.
Behavioral, Biomedical, and Structural Interventions
High-impact HIV prevention includes the use of scalable, cost-effective interventions with demonstrated potential to reduce new infections in the right populations. CDC’s Prevention Research Synthesis (PRS) Project routinely updates an online Compendium of Evidence-Based Interventions and Best Practices for HIV Prevention by adding newly identified behavioral, biomedical, and structural evidence-based interventions (EBI) and best practices to significantly reduce risk of HIV transmission.
Resources are available for the HIV prevention workforce to increase their capacity to prevent new HIV transmissions by using proven interventions, including PrEP.