AVAC published Translating Scientific Advance into Public Health Impact: A Plan for Accelerating Access and Introduction of Injectable CAB for PrEP to provide a comprehensive view of all the moving parts and identify specific priority actions and actors responsible for ensuring time is not wasted and opportunity not squandered in introducing injectable cabotegravir for PrEP. ViiV, policy makers, normative agencies, donors, program implementers, researchers, generic manufacturers, civil society, advocates and communities each have critical roles to play in the coming months, and this summary provides an overview of the plan.
A Plan for Accelerating Access and Introduction of Injectable CAB for PrEP (Summary)
Message from Montreal: Which way will we go?
A string of announcements today coming from AIDS 2022 mark a potential turning point for HIV prevention and for the global health field at large, but a grave question hangs in the balance: which way will we go?
The big news yesterday was a dire warning: the launch of the UNAIDS report, In Danger, documenting what HIV advocates have known: that during the earliest phases of the COVID-19 pandemic, progress against HIV did not just stall, it actively lost ground.
The news today included: promising developments with new data from the HPTN 083 and 084 trials testing injectable cabotegravir for PrEP, which re-confirmed its safety and efficacy; WHO announced new guidelines adding injectable PrEP as an additional prevention option; the drug-maker for the first approved product of injectable PrEP (cabotegravir as PrEP), ViiV, announced an agreement with the Medicines Patent Pool to provide a voluntary license and begin the process of identifying generic manufacturers; and a new coalition was announced, convened by Unitaid, WHO, UNAIDS and the Global Fund, with AVAC serving as the secretariat, to collaborate with civil society, normative agencies, governments, and funders, in accelerating access to affordable longer-acting PrEP.
In the whiplash of announcements and headlines, it’s vital to understand how much is at stake at this moment.
Will proven biomedical options become feasible choices for people who need and want them? Will policies, programs and investments come together for equitable access? It’s up to all of us.
PrEP has an important role to play in reaching targets and accelerating an end to the epidemic. But new AVAC data show only around 2.7 million people have initiated use of oral PrEP since it was introduced ten years ago, falling short of the 2020 target of three million users – and representing only a fraction of the estimated number of people who need it and could benefit from it. Now, the dapivirine vaginal ring and injectable cabotegravir (CAB for PrEP) offer additional options – and an opportunity to re-imagine HIV prevention.
The news from Montreal show promise and potential to develop and deliver new PrEP options faster, smarter and with greater equity than ever before.
AVAC’s Plan for Accelerating Access and Introduction of Injectable CAB for PrEP provides a comprehensive view of all the moving parts involved in delivering this new PrEP option and identifies priorities for ensuring time is not wasted and opportunity is not squandered. The plan focuses on learning the lessons from the first ten years of delivering oral PrEP. It shows how to move faster, more strategically, and with greater coordination— to maximize the impact of injectable CAB for PrEP today, and to overcome access challenges for new PrEP options in the future.
There is enormous work ahead, and it will require all proven prevention methods be available in a marketplace of choice. And these efforts must integrate the involvement of all stakeholders, including civil society, to hold each other accountable. We encourage you to read the plan, or our summary of it, and follow events in real time on Twitter at #AIDS2022. And learn more about the dapivirine vaginal ring and injectable cabotegravir (CAB for PrEP).
Press Release
AVAC, BMGF, CIFF, MedAccess, Unitaid and ViiV Healthcare announce collaboration to catalyse more affordable access to long- acting injectable cabotegravir for HIV prevention
Montreal, 28 July 2022 – At the 24th International AIDS Conference, AVAC, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF), MedAccess, Unitaid, and ViiV Healthcare announced a strategic collaboration to speed equitable access to injectable cabotegravir for HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP). This collaboration demonstrates the commitment of global health partners and ViiV to work together to accelerate access to a new HIV prevention option as part of a comprehensive response to reduce the number of new HIV infections and advance efforts to end the HIV epidemic by 2030.
Cabotegravir long-acting (LA) is an injectable form of PrEP that is given every two months by trained healthcare workers. Cabotegravir LA for PrEP, which was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in December 2021, is the first and only long-acting injectable PrEP option available.
Global health partners and ViiV are committed to making cabotegravir LA for PrEP more accessible in resource-limited settings in the near term, while working in parallel to accelerate market entry of quality-assured generic products. This two-pronged strategy is fundamental to meeting current demand for the product and establishing a sustainable longer-term market.
In order to increase access to cabotegravir LA in the near term, ViiV, AVAC, BMGF, CIFF, MedAccess, and Unitaid will:
- Hold discussions on pricing, with the aim of identifying a pathway for cabotegravir LA for PrEP to be offered to public sector purchasers at a more affordable price
- Examine the potential role of innovative financing mechanisms to deliver on this goal
- Include civil society in planning and decision-making to accelerate equitable access
- Share responses to frequently asked questions on procurement channels and requirements
- Track and share regulatory submissions and approvals across priority countries
“Stagnating rates of new HIV infections underline the importance of getting effective prevention tools to the people who need them as quickly as possible,” said Michael Anderson, CEO of MedAccess. “By combining expertise in science, innovative finance and global health, this collaboration has the potential to catalyse access to cabotegravir LA at a sustainable price. MedAccess will work urgently with all partners to find solutions that unlock access for thousands of people as quickly as possible.”
Efforts to increase access to cabotegravir LA for PrEP will be especially impactful for key populations such as women and girls, who account for a disproportionate number of new HIV infections. Every week, 5,000 adolescent girls and women (15-24 years) contract HIV globally. For key populations, who have a 13-30 times higher risk of acquiring HIV infection as compared to the rest of the population, a long-acting prevention method could help overcome pill fatigue, stigma, and adherence issues.
“Cabotegravir for PrEP has the potential to transform HIV prevention efforts by offering people an additional option for HIV prevention, but only if we can make it available with urgency, with equity and at scale. While no one method will work for all people – or for any one person all of the time – this new approach significantly reduces frequency of dosing and may be easier for some people versus taking a pill a day,” said Mitchell Warren, Executive Director of AVAC.
Deborah Waterhouse, CEO of ViiV Healthcare said: “We are pleased to join this ambitious new collaboration as an active partner, working to find solutions to enable at-scale access to innovative HIV prevention options as quickly as possible. Together with our new voluntary license agreement with the Medicines Patent Pool, we are making significant progress towards our common goal of expanding access to cabotegravir LA for PrEP, which we believe has the potential to be a game changer in HIV prevention and to play an important role in ending the HIV epidemic.”
In response to civil society’s calls to make cabotegravir LA equitably available as soon as possible, global health partners and ViiV Healthcare are stepping up their collaboration to accelerate product access. HIV community groups, advocates and ministries of health are eager to add cabotegravir LA for PrEP to the HIV prevention toolkit, as choice is critical to meeting the needs of those most at risk of acquiring HIV.
“We are thrilled to join this important collaboration, which can help ensure that this transformative prevention tool is made available to those most in need as quickly as possible,” said Nina Russell, Director, TB and HIV Prevention at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. “It takes all of us – companies, foundations, governments, civil society and those affected by HIV – working together to overcome the market failures that keep people in resource-limited settings from benefitting from innovation.”
These efforts build on the recent announcement that ViiV and the Medicines Patent Pool (MPP), which was founded by Unitaid, have agreed a voluntary license for cabotegravir LA. This will enable generic cabotegravir LA for PrEP to come to market in the coming years and should significantly expand the reach of this important prevention tool in low- and lower middle-income, least developed, and sub-Saharan African countries.
The collaboration announced today and the voluntary license agreement between ViiV and MPP, are part of a broader package of interventions being discussed by a coalition of partners to accelerate affordable and equitable access to long-acting PrEP in low- and middle-income countries. The coalition, currently being formalized, will comprise a wide range of partners including funders, communities, civil society organizations, ministries of health, and United Nations agencies, and will be co-convened by Unitaid, the World Health Organization (WHO), the Global Fund and UNAIDS. These partners will jointly identify barriers to access for cabotegravir LA and develop a roadmap to overcome them.
“Oral PrEP took over a decade to be accessible in low- and middle-income countries. This strategic partnership and the broader coalition being formed will ensure that we leverage lessons learned from past experiences to make this promising long-acting solution for PrEP quickly available at an affordable price for everyone who could benefit from it,” said Dr Philippe Duneton, Executive Director of Unitaid.
ViiV Healthcare is also donating product to support initial implementation science projects that will provide critical information on the feasibility, acceptability, and future adoption of cabotegravir LA for PrEP into national programmes in access markets. The partners in this collaboration will ensure these projects are coordinating to address critical questions across the widest possible range of populations and geographies.
“People need more ways to protect themselves from HIV that fit with their lifestyles and environments,” said Miles Kemplay, Executive Director of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights at CIFF. “Cabotegravir promises to be one of those choices – but only if it is available at a cost that health systems can afford. We are looking forward to working with ViiV to figure out how to make cabotegravir accessible to those who need it today.”
About the Partners
AVAC: Founded in 1995, AVAC is a non-profit organization that uses education, policy analysis, advocacy and a network of global collaborations to accelerate the ethical development of and global access to effective HIV prevention options, as part of a comprehensive and integrated pathway to global health equity. Follow AVAC on Twitter @HIVpxresearch and find more at www.avac.org and www.prepwatch.org.
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF): Guided by the belief that every life has equal value, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation works to help all people lead healthy, productive lives. In developing countries, it focuses on improving people’s health and giving them the chance to lift themselves out of hunger and extreme poverty. In the United States, it seeks to ensure that all people—especially those with the fewest resources—have access to the opportunities they need to succeed in school and life. Based in Seattle, Washington, the foundation is led by CEO Mark Suzman, under the direction of co-chairs Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates and the board of trustees.
The Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF) is an independent philanthropic organisation, with offices in Addis Ababa, Beijing, London, Nairobi and New Delhi. Established in 2002, CIFF works with a wide range of partners seeking to transform the lives of children and adolescents in developing countries. Areas of work include adolescent sexual health, maternal and child health, opportunities for girls and young women, tackling child slavery and exploitation, and supporting smart ways to slow down and stop climate change.
MedAccess is a UK-based social finance company with a mission to make global healthcare markets work for everyone. Its core purpose is to make medical supplies more widely available at lower prices in under-served markets. By applying the rigour and skills of business finance, it provides a novel solution to the challenge. MedAccess offers financial guarantees and debt products that reduce commercial risk and allow medical manufacturers to accelerate supplies into new markets at affordable and sustainable prices. In this way, vaccines, medicines, diagnostic tests and medical devices can reach patients far sooner than existing market forces would allow.
Unitaid is a global health organization engaged in finding innovative solutions to prevent, diagnose, and treat diseases more quickly, affordably, and effectively, in low- and middle-income countries. Its work includes funding initiatives to address major diseases such as HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis, as well as HIV co-infections and co-morbidities such as cervical cancer and hepatitis C, and cross-cutting areas, such as fever management. Unitaid is now applying its expertise to address challenges in advancing new therapies and diagnostics for the COVID-19 pandemic, serving as a key member of the Access to COVID-19 Tools (ACT) Accelerator. Unitaid is hosted by the World Health Organization.
ViiV Healthcare is a global specialist HIV company established in November 2009 by GSK and Pfizer dedicated to delivering advances in treatment and care for people living with HIV and for people who are at risk of becoming infected with HIV. Shionogi joined as shareholders in October 2012. The company’s aims are to take a deeper and broader interest in HIV and AIDS than any company has done before and take a new approach to deliver effective and innovative medicines for HIV treatment and prevention, as well as support communities affected by HIV.
For more information on the company, its management, portfolio, pipeline, and commitment, please visit www.viivhealthcare.com.
AVAC Comments to FDA in Support of PrEP Approval
Comments delivered to the FDA’s Antiviral Drugs Advisory Committee (AVDAC) Meeting by Mitchell Warren, Executive Director, AVAC.
CAB-LA Trials at a Glance
This infographic shares a breakdown of the current injectable CAB for PrEP trials including ongoing sub-studies.
Welcoming Amb. John Nkengasong to PEPFAR, and 3 Priorities
Yesterday, Dr. John Nkengasong was sworn-in as the US Global AIDS Coordinator and Special Representative for Global Health Diplomacy overseeing PEPFAR, the largest funder of HIV/AIDS programming in the world. We are confident that with Ambassador Nkengasong’s ambitious leadership, vision and experience, PEPFAR and the global community can maintain the urgency and impact in ending the AIDS pandemic, continue responding to COVID, and build the sustainable health infrastructure that we so desperately need.
We also want to thank Angeli Achrekar for her steadfast commitment to end the AIDS pandemic and her terrific leadership over the past two years.
At AVAC, our eyes are on three major actions to help us get there these next few months – and urge Ambassador Nkengasong’s and PEPFAR to take immediate and bold actions to:
- Leverage new biomedical prevention options to re-boot primary prevention – and make sure these new options become viable choices for all people who can benefit from them. Accelerating access and introduction of injectable CAB for PrEP and ensuring political and financial support to also introduce the dapivirine vaginal ring provide an opportunity to build comprehensive, sustainable and integrated prevention programmatic platforms to deliver choice today and build for a future of even more options.
- Center communities in the prevention response. Generating deeper, more consistent community engagement in prevention requires restructuring community engagement. Community input must move beyond “consultation” on specific questions or challenges to a deeper, more meaningful, sustained, strategic engagement that supports the full navigation of challenges from research to rollout, in all their complexity.
- Imbed the AIDS response into the future of global health security and pandemic preparedness and response (PPR). The certainty of more complex and challenging health crises on the horizon demands rights-based public health approaches that focus on health systems strengthening, comprehensive integration of key health priorities including HIV, TB, malaria, sexual and reproductive health and non-communicable diseases and lay effective groundwork for addressing emerging health priorities in the future. And efforts to build a global pandemic response capacity must leverage the organizational capacities, investments, and reach of PEPFAR and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria.
There remain enormous challenges and opportunities ahead. We are very excited to welcome Ambassador Nkengasong back to PEPFAR and for his leadership in the global AIDS response. We look very forward to working with him toward our shared goals of ending the AIDS epidemic and ensuring global health equity.
Accelerating Access and Introduction of Injectable CAB for PrEP
Late last month, ViiV Healthcare, the maker of injectable cabotegravir (CAB) announced that it is “actively negotiating voluntary licensing terms” of CAB for PrEP to the Medicines Patent Pool (MPP) and is “committed to supplying” the product at a non-profit price for public programs in low-income and all sub-Saharan African countries until a generic is available. This announcement comes after months-long pressure from advocates and others, demanding that ViiV does its part to make good on the promise of injectable CAB for PrEP to advance HIV prevention and global health equity – see a number of important statements from advocates emerging from these discussions.
While this is an important step forward, and an example of advocacy at its best, this is only one piece of the puzzle that will make CAB for PrEP available to all who need and want it. Advocates have much more work ahead to ensure swift and equitable access to CAB.
And AVAC has a plan.
AVAC’s Plan for Accelerating Access and Introduction of Injectable CAB for PrEP provides a comprehensive view of all the moving parts involved in delivering this new PrEP option and identifies priorities for ensuring time is not wasted and opportunity is not squandered. The plan focuses on learning the lessons from the first ten years of delivering oral PrEP and how to move faster, more strategically, and with greater coordination to maximize the impact of injectable CAB for PrEP.
AVAC’s plan calls on ViiV, policy makers, normative agencies, donors, program implementers, researchers, civil society, advocates and communities to act on a range of key activities, which include:
- A transparent commitment from ViiV, and a negotiated guarantee from donors, to a cost-effective and affordable price and volume of CAB for PrEP to support early launch, introduction and rollout.
- Inclusion of injectable CAB for PrEP in WHO guidelines, which are expected ahead of AIDS 2022.
- National programs in priority countries complete CAB for PrEP registration or secure relevant waivers.
- Voluntary licensing from ViiV to select generic manufacturers, including technology transfer as required.
- Donor investments in generic manufacturing capacity.
- Market assessments and demand forecasts are updated with data from initial projects, to inform programming, manufacturing and cost.
- Operational research and implementation science studies identify successful, scalable delivery channels; a testing algorithm that balances resistance risk with the needs of users and providers; ongoing engagement with communities and civil society; and a mechanism for independent coordination.
The plan also lays out advocacy priorities and calls on advocates to hold decision-makers accountable, for the rollout of CAB for PrEP – and on prevention generally. Is there clarity about next steps? Are there targets and milestones in place? Is there adequate funding to support strategic and accelerated rollout? How might decisions be made about who would get the product first, if it’s licensed and introduced through phased rollout?
In the days, weeks and months to come, advocates will continue to engage with ViiV, WHO, donors and other decision-making bodies focused on the future of CAB for PrEP and HIV prevention at large. Read our full statement here. AVAC hopes this plan will be the guide. As always, we will be tracking the progress, investing support, and keeping you informed.
Press Release
New AVAC Plan Lays Out Priorities for Swift and Equitable Rollout of Injectable Cabotegravir for PrEP
Contact
Kay Marshall, +1 (347) 249-6375, [email protected]
June 9, 2022 — As the HIV prevention field is poised to introduce two promising new options: the dapivirine vaginal ring (DVR) and injectable cabotegravir (CAB), AVAC lays out a Plan for Accelerating Access and Introduction of Injectable CAB for PrEP. The plan identifies immediate priorities to support the swift rollout of CAB for PrEP and calls on stakeholders to ensure that it’s delivered to programs at scale at the lowest price possible.
In December 2021, the US FDA approved CAB as PrEP, making it the first injectable PrEP option to be added to a growing range of proven prevention methods. Eight additional applications have been filed for regulatory approval in priority countries with decisions expected later this year. In addition, WHO guidelines for injectable PrEP are expected later this year.
“COVID-19 has shown us that the field can compress timelines and new technologies can be developed, tested and distributed quickly and with urgency, at least for wealthier nations,” said Mitchell Warren, AVAC Executive Director. “The challenge now is to learn these lessons from COVID-19. Can the world respond just as urgently for HIV prevention? Can we speed up the process, with delivery happening in parallel to further research that may be needed? Can access be scaled and programs designed so that injectable PrEP truly impacts the HIV epidemic and is delivered with equity, reaching those who need it most? The answer to all these questions must be yes. But will take all of us, doing our part.”
AVAC’s plan comes on the heels of months-long discussions between advocates and other stakeholders who participated in a series of meetings with ViiV Healthcare, the maker of injectable CAB for PrEP, and in the World Health Organization (WHO) Guidelines Review Group. These discussions prioritized the imperative to make good on the promise of injectable cabotegravir to advance HIV prevention and global health—a number of important statements from advocates emerged from these discussions. In response, ViiV announced last month that it is “actively negotiating voluntary licensing terms” of CAB for PrEP to the Medicines Patent Pool (MPP) and is “committed to supplying” CAB for PrEP at a non-profit price for public programs in low-income and all sub-Saharan African countries until a generic is available.
“This is an example of advocacy at its best, but while this commitment is hugely important, advocates have much more work ahead to ensure that all stakeholders do their part to support swift and equitable access to injectable CAB for PrEP,” Warren added.
AVAC’s plan provides a comprehensive view of all the moving parts involved in delivering CAB for PrEP and identifies priorities for ensuring time is not wasted and opportunity is not squandered in making CAB for PrEP available to all who need and want it. The plan focuses on learning the lessons from the first ten years of delivering oral PrEP and how to move faster, more strategically, and with greater coordination to maximize the impact of injectable CAB for PrEP.
“Injectable CAB for PrEP gives us an important opportunity to advance HIV prevention for populations most at risk. We are committed to ensuring we get rollout right so that a broad range of options are available to people who want and need them, especially young women,” wrote a group of Southern African Women Advocates in a March 2022 statement. “We… will work with all stakeholders, including ViiV, to make a real impact in HIV prevention.”
Members of this group along with colleagues in East Africa, with support from AVAC, Advocacy for Prevention of HIV and AIDS (APHA) and International Community of Women living with HIV Eastern Africa (ICWEA,) have formed the African Women Community Prevention Accountability Board to serve as an ongoing, independent mechanism for stakeholder engagement to provide input into CAB for PrEP planning and implementation among cisgender women in Africa.
Oral PrEP was first shown to be safe and effective in 2010 and first approved in 2012, but the field moved too slowly—and now 10 years since first approved, fewer than 2 million people have used this option, while an estimated 120 million could benefit from it.
AVAC’s plan calls on ViiV, policy makers, normative agencies, donors, program implementers, researchers, civil society, advocates and communities to act on a range of key activities, which include:
- A transparent commitment from ViiV, and a negotiated guarantee from donors, on a cost-effective and affordable price and volume for CAB for PrEP to support early launch, introduction and rollout.
- Inclusion of injectable CAB for PrEP in WHO guidelines, which are expected ahead of AIDS 2022.
- National Programs in priority countries complete CAB for PrEP registration or secure relevant waivers.
- Voluntary licensing from ViiV to select generic manufacturer(s), including technology transfer as required.
- Donor investments in generic manufacturing capacity.
- National Programs in priority countries complete CAB for PrEP registration or secure relevant waivers.
- Market assessments and demand forecasts are updated with data from initial projects, to inform programming,manufacturing and cost.
- Operational research and implementation science studies identify successful, scalable delivery channels; a testing algorithm that balances resistance risk with the needs of users and providers; ongoing engagement with communities and civil society; and an independent coordination mechanism.
The plan also lays out advocacy priorities and calls on advocates to hold decision-makers on CAB for PrEP—and on prevention generally—accountable. Is there clarity about next steps? Are there targets and milestones in place? Is there adequate funding to support rollout? How might decisions be made about who would get the product first, if it’s licensed and introduced through phased rollout?
“We welcome the recent announcement by ViiV to start negotiations with the MPP to potentially open the door for generic injectable CAB- LA. While it’s notable progress, this is NOT a license agreement,” said Kenly Sikwese, Executive Director at the Afrocab Treatment Access Partnership and a member of AVAC’s board of directors. “New HIV prevention options, in particular injectable cabotegravir for PrEP, hold the promise to transform HIV prevention in our communities. For years, communities have advocated for diverse HIV prevention options that respond to the needs, lifestyles, and unique experiences of our community members at greatest risk for HIV infection. Affordable, widespread access to injectable CAB can represent a step change for HIV prevention, if we can collectively move faster and more strategically.”
In the days to come, advocates will continue to engage with ViiV, WHO, donors and other decision-making bodies focused on the future of CAB for PrEP. AVAC will be tracking the progress, investing support, and putting a spotlight on the key priorities as information becomes available.
AVAC has worked on PrEP advocacy and introduction since the design of the earliest studies on the efficacy of oral PrEP beginning in 2004. In 2007, AVAC partnered with UNAIDS to develop the Good Participatory Practice Guidelines, offering a roadmap and principles to effectively engage with all stakeholders in the design and conduct of biomedical HIV prevention trials. Nearly 15 years later, with growing advocacy calling for greater political and financial support to introduce and rollout the dapivirine vaginal ring, or PrEP ring, along with injectable CAB for PrEP, many of the initial principles of GPP—transparency, accountability, community stakeholder autonomy, and mutual understanding—continue to be more important than ever.
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About AVAC: Founded in 1995, AVAC is a non-profit organization that uses education, policy analysis, advocacy and a network of global collaborations to accelerate the ethical development and global delivery of HIV prevention options as part of a comprehensive response to the pandemic. Follow AVAC on Twitter @HIVpxresearch and find more at www.avac.org and www.prepwatch.org.
Statement on the Dapivirine Ring for Women: Call for Accelerated Global Access
This statement, from a coalition of advocates, applauds the WHO for its ongoing support and its 2021 recommendation of the dapivirine vaginal ring as an additional prevention option for women. The advocates call on funders, country governments and community leaders to sustain their support for the ring’s introduction and rollout in African countries where it is needed and for prompt regulatory reviews. And they call on HIV programs to integrate the ring, and collaborate with communities on the design of those programs.
Dual Prevention Pill: Integrating services and expanding choices
Advocates are coming together from several fields to plan for the introduction of the Dual Prevention Pill (DPP). Currently in development, this daily pill would prevent both HIV and pregnancy. Once approved, the DPP would be an important new option in a menu of choices for contraception and HIV prevention, paving the way for additional multi-purpose prevention technologies (MPTs) in the pipeline. Advocacy to ensure these options become real choices will be essential.
In April, AVAC and FP2030 convened a consultation with family planning (FP) and sexual and reproductive health (SRH) stakeholders to understand their unique perspectives on the DPP. The consultation put a spotlight on key questions and issues that will inform planning for DPP introduction, the development and delivery of future MPTs and, hopefully, accelerate the integration of SRH and HIV prevention programs.
The consultation identified key issues including the need to:
- Understand the market for the DPP. Demand is expected from a segment of the market of women looking for contraception and HIV prevention.
- Program health services to allow for method switching. Individual women may change what contraception they prefer at different times in their lives.
- Educate providers, partners and communities about the DPP in the context of HIV prevention and contraception. Overcoming stigma and community acceptance are fundamental to supporting women to use the DPP and other prevention methods.
- Expand, integrate and demedicalize health services now, and include access to oral PrEP in particular, which will create a model for increasing access to the DPP and other MPTs.
Learn more with the resources below!
- April 12th DPP Consultation materials, including recording and slides. See the FP2030 landing page here.
- Meeting summary featuring key takeaways and top questions. French version here.
- Updated FAQs on the DPP.