PrEP use hits record level as progress begins to slow

Ahead of National HIV Testing Day, Saturday, June 27, a new report from AIDSVu finds the number of people in the United States using pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV prevention grew to a record high in 2025, but growth has since slowed, and there are still disparities in use among regions as well as racial and ethnic groups.

Routine HIV testing remains key to ending the epidemic, and a person must test negative for HIV before starting PrEP. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that everyone ages 13–64 get tested for HIV at least once as part of routine health care, but only 40% of Americans reported ever being tested in 2024.

A record 644,170 people on PrEP in the nation in 2025, according to the report from AIDSVu, which provides interactive online maps on issues related to HIV /AIDS. But the increase in users from 2024 to 2025 was just 10%, the smallest rise in the past five years.

PrEP, when taken as prescribed, reduces the chance of acquiring HIV through sex by as much as 99%. It also reduces the risk of acquiring the virus through injection drug use by as much as 74%. Four drugs have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use as PrEP: the oral medications Truvada (also available as a generic) and Descovy (although not approved for people vulnerable to HIV through receptive vaginal sex), to be taken daily, and two long-acting injectable drugs, Apretude (a shot administered every two months) and Yeztugo (a pair of injections given every six months).

Despite PrEP’s documented effectiveness, its adoption is uneven, AIDSVu notes. For instance, the South has the greatest unmet need for PrEP, as it accounted for 53% of new HIV diagnoses in 2024 but only 39% of PrEP users in 2025. It had 12 PrEP users for every new HIV diagnosis in the region, while the Northeast had 26, the Midwest 18 and the West 20.

Among racial and ethnic groups, Black people had the highest percentage of new HIV diagnoses in 2024, 39%, but accounted for only 15% of PrEP users in 2025. Hispanics represented 34% of new HIV diagnoses in 2024 but only 18% of PrEP users in 2025. White people accounted for 21% of new HIV diagnoses in 2024 but 63% of PrEP users in 2025.

PrEP use was also underrepresented among young people and women. People ages 13–24 represented only 10% of PrEP users in 2025 while having accounted for 18% of new HIV diagnoses in 2024. Women likely accounted for 10% of PrEP users in 2025 but had 20% of new HIV diagnoses in 2024.

The data underscore the need to address cultural and structural barriers to PrEP use and to fight for federal funding for HIV prevention and treatment, which remains under threat, notes a press release from AIDSVu.

“PrEP remains one of the most powerful tools we have to prevent HIV, but access and uptake is still far too uneven,” Patrick Sullivan, PhD, professor of epidemiology at Emory University and principal scientist for AIDSVu, said in the press release. “The data on AIDSVu make clear that progress is possible when prevention is prioritized, while also showing where unmet need remains. Awareness, stigma, insurance coverage and provider access can all determine whether people are able to start PrEP and remain on it over time. Federal and state governments must continue investing in HIV prevention, expanding access to PrEP and directing resources to the communities most impacted by HIV. Policymakers, public health leaders and community organizations all have a role to play in ensuring that PrEP reaches the people who need it most.”

AIDSVu is a project of Emory University’s Rollins School of Public Health in partnership with Gilead Sciences and the Center for AIDS Research at Emory University. The full data can be viewed on AIDSVu’s interactive maps and on PrEPVu, AIDSVu’s platform that tracks PrEP use across the U.S.