HIV charity wins legal battle with NHS over breakthrough treatment

Leading Aid charity National Aids Trust (NAT) has won a high court battle with NHS England to have it fund preventative treatment for HIV.

Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) treatment adds an extra layer of protection to condoms in preventing the spread of HIV.

Deborah Gold, the chief executive of NAT, said: “Over 4,000 people are getting HIV every year in the UK – we desperately need further prevention options to add to condom use.”

The pill costs £400 a month per person and works by disabling the virus to stop it from multiplying.

In March, NHS England refused to fund the drug saying it does not have the legal power to commission it and that under 2013 regulations “local authorities are the responsible commissioner for HIV prevention services”.

The judge, Mr. Justice Green, found there was nothing stopping the NHS paying for the drug.

“NHS England has erred in deciding that it has no power or duty to commission the preventative drug in issue” and has “mischaracterised the PrEP treatment as preventative when in law it is capable of amounting to treatment for a person with infection” said Green.

Gold was particularly pleased with the verdict. “This is fantastic news. It is vindication for the many people who were let down when NHS England absolved itself of responsibility for PrEP” said Gold.

Campaigners have said that it’s the NHS’s “ethical duty” to provide PrEP to protect men who have unprotected sex with other men.

Medical director at HIV/Aids charity Terrence Higgins Trust, Dr Michael Brady described the drug as “a game changer” after results of the trial released in February 2015 showed that the drug reduces the risk of HIV infection by 90% when administered to uninfected men.

“We urge the government, NHS England and local authorities to make PrEP a key priority in the fight against HIV” said Brady.

However the ruling does not mean it will now be automatically funded. The NHS has yet to respond and they could still decide the drug is not effective enough to warrant NHS expenditure on it.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, which advises the NHS on which drugs to fund, has been asked to look into this.

“PrEP works. It saves money and it will make an enormous difference to the lives of men and women across the country who are at risk of acquiring HIV. The delay to commissioning PrEP is both unethical and expensive” said Gold.

NHS England has also warned that if Prep is prioritised there is a risk that other people wanting access to other preventative treatments may pose a legal challenge as well.

The drug is currently being used in the US, Canada, Australia and France.