This policy options review and evidence-scoping of Pre-Exposure. Prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV prevention has been commissioned by HIV Ireland Ltd (HIVI) and the Gay Health Network (GHN). The primary aim of this pape is to provide evidence-based guidance on PrEP efficacy, while establishing the views of key populations affected by HIV, and stakeholders directly and indirectly involved in the provision of HIV services throughout Ireland.

This study relies significantly on existing evidence for PrEP particularly reviews conducted by the World Health Organisation (WHO), the National Institutes for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), the National Health Service (Wales), the United States Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the British HIV Association (BHIVA) to reach conclusions about policy options for PrEP in Ireland.

PrEP is a biomedical HIV prevention strategy meaning that it uses antiretroviral drugs to protect HIV-negative people from HIV infection. In August 2016, the European Commission granted marketing authorisation for once-daily TruvadaR (emtricitabine 200 mg/tenofovir disoproxil 245 mg; FTC/TDF) in combination with safer-sex practices to reduce the risk of sexually acquired HIV-1 infection among uninfected adults at high risk, which means that once-daily TruvadaR is licensed for PrEP in Ireland.