A national study found that telemedicine now provides a substantial share of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV prevention in the United States. The researchers report that nearly 20% of US PrEP users—more than 110,000 of roughly 580,000 users in 2024—received their medication via telemedicine, a rise from under 1% in 2019 and 9% in 2022.
The analysis used national PrEP prescription counts from AIDSVu and de-identified HIPAA-compliant data from MISTR, the nationęs largest telePrEP provider. The Emory team worked with public health partners and notes the estimate likely undercounts telePrEP because it uses data from a single national provider.
Key findings include that most telePrEP users had not used PrEP before, many were uninsured, and more than 80% chose at-home testing for HIV and other infections. The study says telehealth can reduce access barriers, and the authors recommend building on the telePrEP model as care changes. The research appears in JAMA Network Open.
Difficult words
- telemedicine — medical care provided remotely by phone or internet
- pre-exposure prophylaxis — medicine to prevent infection before exposure
- de-identify — remove personal information from datade-identified
- uninsured — without health insurance or health plan
- undercount — count less than the real numberundercounts
- at-home testing — tests people do at their own home
- telehealth — health care services given remotely
- barrier — things that make access difficultbarriers
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Discussion questions
- Do you think telemedicine can make prevention care like PrEP easier in your community? Why or why not?
- What are the advantages and possible problems of at-home testing compared with clinic testing?
- How could health services reach people who are uninsured to offer prevention care?
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