South Africa rolls out game-changing HIV shot amid funding shortfalls

Key points

• South Africa rolls out game-changing HIV shot amid funding shortfalls toggle caption Ihsaan Haffe/AFP via Getty Images JOHANNESBURG — South Africa rolled out a new, biannual HIV prevention drug on Friday that has the potential to drastically cut infection rates, but U.S. aid cuts mean access will be limited.
• Lenacapavir, a kind of Pre-exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP), is injected into the stomach every six months and is basically failproof at preventing high-risk individuals from contracting the virus.
• South Africa is not the first African country to introduce injectable Lenacapavir.
• The drug is rolling out across Africa faster than any HIV prevention option to date, and South Africa becomes the ninth country on the continent to launch it.
• But in a nation with the highest number of HIV cases in the world, the long-acting injection is being hailed as a potential game changer.