Health Council recommendation: PrEP is an essential part of HIV prevention

On Tuesday March 27, 2018 the Health Council of the Netherlands issued an advice on the use of PrEP for HIV prevention. PrEP is intended for people who don’t have an HIV infection but are at high risk for contracting the virus. As part of the H-TEAM initiative, GGD Amsterdam has made PrEP available to 376 people in the Amsterdam PrEP project (AMPrEP). The first findings of the AMPrEP project have contributed to the advice of the Health Council.

The Health Council states that PrEP offers effective protection against HIV infection when taken with adherence. The Health Council expects that the number of new HIV infections can be reduced when PrEP is distributed to the group that is at highest risk for HIV. The advice of the Council reads as follows (summary): ‘The Committee recommends making PrEP available for high-risk MSM in combination with a well-organised medical follow-up system. This latter recommendation is urgent, as the recent fall in price could lead to people starting to use PrEP on their own initiative without proper guidance. In addition, the Committee recommends that the long-term effects of PrEP should be carefully monitored and that the provision of PrEP should be reviewed after a period of five years.’

An executive summary of the advice can be found on the Health Council website. The Health Council has also created a video on the functioning of PrEP and the advice of the Health Council (Dutch only).