Ontario To Cover HIV Prevention Drugs

Ontario is set to cover the once-daily pill under public health plan
 
Ontario is set to cover PrEP (Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis), under its public health plan. Ontario’s Health Ministry added the HIV prevention pill to its formulary of publicly covered drugs on Thursday, effective September 28.
 
Ontario is the second province in Canada to cover the combination HIV prevention pill. Quebec’s drug program already covers PrEP for HIV treatment and prevention while British Columbia is currently in discussions about the availability and accessibility of the drug.
 
Simply put, PrEP is a once-a-day pill that contains two anti-HIV drugs that have been proven to prevent the transmission of HIV by up to 99 percent with adherence but can cost as much as $1,000 per month for the original brand, Truvada.
 
Previously most private insurance plans covered PrEP, since they generally cover drugs that have Health Canada’s approval (Health Canada approved Truvada in 2016). But, the specifics depended on the details of each person’s individual plan — and some Health Insurance companies didn’t cover the cost of the drug at all.
 
With Health Canada finally on board, the government will cover the cost of Truvada, taken as PrEP, improving access to all gay men living in Ontario.
 
While PrEP has been shown to reduce risk of HIV infection through sex for gay and bisexual men, the medication does not protect against other sexually transmitted infections.