AP Health Minister Vidadala Rajini kicks off awareness drive on PrEP in Guntur Medical College

GUNTUR: Health Minister Vidadala Rajini on Monday inaugurated an awareness programme on pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) at GMCANA Auditorium in Guntur Medical College premises here.

Speaking on the occasion, the Minister said, the AP State AIDS Control Society is scaling up the HIV response along the prevention and treatment continuum.

As of July 2022, as many as 2.62 lakh people were diagnosed with HIV, out of the estimated 3.13 People Living with HIV (PLHIV) in the State. Out of 2.6 lakh positive cases detected, 2.02 lakh patients are receiving treatment.

As the Government of India is taking necessary action to eradicate HIV by 2030, the National AIDS Control Organisation has introduced PrEP. It reduces the chance of getting HIV from sex or drug injection.

The State government in collaboration with a Chennai-based voluntary health service (VHS) has initiated the provision of these PrEP tablets, which usually cost Rs 20,000 in the market at a subsidy rate of Rs 450 at selected centres in the State. These services are already available in Visakhapatnam and Vijayawada.