HIV prevention drugs for older Americans may be free under new Biden proposal

  • 📰 ABC7Chicago
  • ⏱ Reading Time:
  • 65 sec. here
  • 3 min. at publisher
  • 📊 Quality Score:
  • News: 29%
  • Publisher: 63%

Health Health Headlines News

Health Health Latest News,Health Health Headlines

The U.S. government has proposed that Medicare fully cover preexposure prophylaxis drugs that prevent HIV to help end new infections.

The drugs, known by the shorthand "PrEP," would be free in pill form and -- for the first time -- as long-acting injectables through the government insurance program designed for those 65 and older.

Though PrEP has been embraced by gay and trans Americans, it is prescribed less often to heterosexuals over 50 or women of any age. In the first three months of this year,according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The racial gap is large, too: While 66% of white people eligible for PrEP got prescriptions for it in that period, only 8% of eligible Black people and 17% of eligible Hispanic people did.of women with HIV in the U.S.

"Gay white men have had a narrative of dignity and respect with regards to HIV treatment, and I would never want to change that narrative," she said. "But the message needs to be broadened. Forty-two years into the HIV epidemic, the current HIV prevention model is detrimental to Black women who could benefit from PrEP."to approve PrEP, in 2012, it now trails the rest of the world in equitable access. That's mostly due to the cost of laboratory tests and medical visits.

"It became more affordable," said Owen, now PrEP lead at one of the U.K.'s top HIV and sexual health charities,In the U.S., Smith said, the lack of a national PrEP program that would make the drugs and associated bloodwork free and a heated political climate around health care have hindered HIV outreach.

 

Thank you for your comment. Your comment will be published after being reviewed.
Please try again later.
We have summarized this news so that you can read it quickly. If you are interested in the news, you can read the full text here. Read more:

 /  🏆 284. in HEALTH

Health Health Latest News, Health Health Headlines

Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.

HIV prevention drugs for older Americans may be free under new Biden proposalThe proposed policy could help stem the spread of the virus.
Source: ABC - 🏆 471. / 51 Read more »

HIV prevention drugs for older Americans may be free under new Biden proposalThe U.S. government has proposed that Medicare fully cover preexposure prophylaxis drugs that prevent HIV to help end new infections.
Source: abc13houston - 🏆 255. / 63 Read more »

HIV prevention drugs for older Americans may be free under new Biden proposalThe U.S. government has proposed that Medicare fully cover preexposure prophylaxis drugs that prevent HIV to help end new infections.
Source: abc7newsbayarea - 🏆 529. / 51 Read more »