Injectable PrEP Can Prevent 87% New Cases Than Daily Pills

An updated report discovered long-acting injectable PrEP would prevent 87% more cases than using only daily oral PrEP.

The HIV+Hepatitis Policy Institute recently issued a report that evaluated the cost needed to fund a national Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) program based on both long-acting injections and daily oral pills. This was an update to a report done in November of 2022, where the calculation of cases averted by PrEP was based on daily oral pills only. This previous report found that the use of oral daily PrEP over ten years would prevent only 74,540 person-years of HIV treatment and cause medical savings of $2.27 billion. 

In comparison, the new report that was based on both long-acting and daily PrEP that was done in November of 2023 found that with the inclusion of long-acting PrEP, 87% more cases of HIV would be prevented, saving 139,296 person-hours of HIV treatment and $4.25 billion of medical costs. This difference is mostly due to the improved adherence of people on injectable, long-acting PrEP compared to people on daily oral PrEP. 

Carl Schmidt, executive director of the HIV+Hepatitis Policy Institute, explains this change saying that, “We must make sure that everyone with a reason to be on PrEP is able to access the medication best suited to their needs. With new long-acting PrEP, many people who have had a hard time adhering to a regimen of a daily pill now have another option to prevent HIV.”

This new type of PrEP may also help with the disparity between people who need PrEP and the people who take it. Out of 1.2 million Americans who need PrEP, only 36 percent of them are on it. This is due to the lack of access due to race, gender identity, or geographic location and is why more resources for PrEP are needed and can be allocated to where the need is greatest.