Amsterdam on the front line of HIV prevention, highlighting the importance of access to PrEP

News HIVLGBTQI+Sex Workers

Amsterdam on the front line of HIV prevention, highlighting the importance of access to PrEP

Netherlands

25.09.2023

The Mayor of Amsterdam and Mark Vermeulen, the director of Aidsfonds – Soa Aids Nederland have just shared at the Fast-Track Cities 2023 conference* that Amsterdam had only 9 new HIV acquisitions last year and highlighted the importance of access to PrEP, trans-led services & sex worker community engagement.

As the figures show, 9 people were (estimated) infected with HIV in Amsterdam last year. According to the fund, the reason for the significant decrease in HIV acquisition is the increasing availability of PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis), a medicine that reduces the chances of getting HIV.

As Het Parool reports, these numbers have been rapidly declining for several years, with 66 people diagnosed with HIV in the city in 2021, compared to 128 in 2019. Aidsfonds – Soa Aids Nederland stated that the reason for the achievement is additional financing to make the HIV prevention medicine PrEP accessible to more people. PrEP is available from the general practitioner or the Municipal Health Service for people who are at increased risk: for men who have sex with men, for trans men and trans women who have sex with men and for some sex workers.

*The Fast-Track Cities 2023 conference, taking place between 25-27 September in Amsterdam, gathers people living with HIV, health professionals, mayors and many other experts from more than 500 cities from all over the world to create a platform for sharing successes and best practices and address challenges in urban HIV, tuberculosis, and Hepatitis C responses. This year, inclusion in healthcare is the conference’s primary focus.

Amsterdam on the front line of HIV prevention, highlighting the importance of access to PrEP

Related posts