A British radio host went on a ridiculous rant about PrEP funding
A British radio host went on a rant about the NHS “being forced” to fund PrEP and said people should “just not have sex” to avoid spreading HIV.
LBC radio host Ian Collins believed that the Court of Appeal’s decision to make PrEP NHS funded will negatively impact other health services.
Collins said: “This is not a drug that is for people with HIV. It is funding people without HIV so they can sleep with people with HIV.
“We are funding a drug for people who haven’t got HIV but as a way of protecting them so they might not get it, so they can have sex.
“That is the dictionary definition of a scandal.”
Collins went on to compare HIV to children who have cystic fibrosis in that they both have to “give things up.”
“If it’s costing the NHS that much money, just don’t have sex. Love you partner, hug your partner, kiss you partner, do all manner of other things, just don’t have sex. There is lots of people who don’t have sex for lots of reasons.
“Do you think kids who have cystic fibrosis don’t have to give things up? Of course they do. You’re being asked to keep your pants on, that is it,” he added.
HIV charities and healthcare campaigners are angry at the way funding for PrEP has been portrayed as a threat and competitor to other treatments.
NHS England was accused of “feeding media” negative stories about HIV-preventing PrEP drugs.
The Daily Mail had claimed PrEP drugs are a “promiscuity pill” with a “skewed sense of values”, while Channel 5’s Wright Show led with “Free £20m drugs for gays who won’t use condoms”.
However, health experts have said rolling out PrEP in the UK would be cost-effective if it leads to even a small reduction in HIV infections, as the lifetime cost of treating one HIV infection can be up to £380,000.
Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) drug Truvada can reduce people’s chances of being infected with HIV by up to 99 percent if taken daily. The pill costs less than £500 per year if generic drugs are used.
Watch Collin’s rant here:
