Trump administration will provide HIV prevention drug for free to the uninsured

HHS Secretary Alex Azar rolled out a new program yesterday that will provide free HIV preventive treatment to individuals without prescription drug coverage. PrEP — or pre-exposure prophylaxis — is a daily pill that is highly effective at preventing the disease, but the drug is also very expensive: For uninsured individuals, a 30-day supply of PrEP can be $2,000 or more. The initiative, called “Ready, Set, PrEP,” is part of the Trump administration’s plan to reduce new HIV transmissions by 90% before 2030. PrEP drug maker Gilead announced earlier this year that it would donate to the government enough supplies to protect up to 200,000 people a year over the next 11 years. Fewer than 20% of the 1.2 million people who should be on the medication were prescribed PrEP last year, according to CDC estimates.