New York City, once the at heart of the nation's deadly AIDS crisis, recently announced that the number of new HIV cases fell to a record low in 2018 by utilizing a strategy some health care experts believe could help bring the disease below epidemic levels if implemented nationwide.
Researchers said NYC's success is the result of a three-part plan implemented by the city, which stresses the importance of identifying, tracking and treating residents infected with the virus. The plan relies heavily on the use of PrEP -- or pre-exposure prophylaxis, which prevents those exposed to the virus from contracting it -- and antiretroviral drugs, which suppress HIV to untransmittable levels.
"The key, of course, is identifying the infected persons and getting them into care," Hildreth, who serves as president and CEO of Meharry Medical College, told ABC News."Unlike what we thought would be necessary, that is a vaccine, this is ending the epidemic through the drugs that are available to treat HIV."
The plan included a $23 million annual investment to increase access to HIV treatment and prevention services, including PrEP. The funding is also used to enhance methods for tracing HIV transmission and support initiatives that focus on communities disproportionately affected by HIV.