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CDC now recommends health providers discuss HIV prevention medication with all sexually active patients

Dec 9, 2021

IN A MAJOR SHIFT, CDC NOW RECOMMENDS HEALTH PROVIDERS DISCUSS HIV PREVENTION MEDICATION WITH ALL SEXUALLY ACTIVE PATIENTS

Trillium Health, the leading healthcare provider for HIV prevention and treatment in Greater Rochester, applauds the recommendations

December 9, 2021 (ROCHESTER, NY) – The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently announced revised guidelines for HIV prevention medication. Pre-exposure prophylaxis, more commonly known as “PrEP”, reduces the risk of getting HIV by up to 99-percent when taken as prescribed. The CDC is now recommending that health care providers discuss PrEP with all patients who are sexually active.

The new recommendation follows preliminary data from 2020 showing that 1.2 million people should have been on PrEP, but only about 25% of those individuals actually got a prescription. While new HIV cases have generally declined nationwide in recent years, Monroe County saw an uptick in new cases in 2020.

“While HIV is more treatable than ever before, prevention by far remains the best course of action. I applaud the new CDC recommendation, and I encourage more people to get on PrEP,” said Dr. William Valenti, Staff Physician, and Co-Founder of Trillium Health. “Trillium Health has already adopted these recommendations as part of our mission to prevent new HIV infections.”

In addition to its clinic in downtown Rochester, Trillium Health has a dedicated HIV Prevention Team to help get patients started on PrEP. Trillium Health also operates the website ProtectWithPrEP.com where people can learn more and book an appointment. Appointments can also be scheduled by phone at 1-888-PREP-123.

Additional related Trillium Health services include:

  • 24-Hour emergency access to post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP). PEP is a pill for people who may have been exposed to HIV within the last 72 hours. PEP stops HIV exposure from becoming an HIV infection. Call 800-923-9394 any time to be connected to PEP.
  • At-home HIV and STD testing kits are available free of charge and can be requested at trilliumhealth.org/testing
  • The MOCHA Center offers free HIV and STD testing for LGBTQ+ people of color. Learn more at trilliumhealth.org/MOCHA
  • Trillium Health works hard to make PrEP available at little to no cost. Through its sliding-fee discount program, Trillium Health ensures that finances are never a barrier to care.

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About Trillium Health

Trillium Health is a Community Health Center that provides extraordinary care for all, including LGBTQ+ health, ensuring equitable, judgement-free, and affordable care. We believe that everyone who walks through our doors deserves high quality, affordable healthcare, regardless of income, sexual orientation, gender identity, race, or ethnicity. For more information, please visit www.trilliumhealth.org