PAN was pleased to be invited to the Canadian Treatment as Prevention (TaSP) Summit and we fully endorse the BC-CfEs call to action, for the Prime Minister and federal government to take action to shore up both domestic and international actions to address HIV/AIDS. BC-CfE released a press statement on June 6, 2025 (excerpt below). Read complete statement.
Vancouver, BC, June 6, 2025: The BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS (BC-CfE) is hosting a national Summit of medical and HIV experts to raise the alarm about the rising incidence of HIV in Canada, the immense threat that US cuts to HIV programs pose to millions at risk of disease and death globally, and the need for Canadian leadership to help prevent a resurgence in HIV/AIDS.
Despite the groundbreaking work done to implement the BC-CfE’s Treatment as Prevention® (TasP®) and HIV Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) programs in many jurisdictions, Canada is losing ground to HIV/AIDS across the country. The latest available government statistics for 2023 show a 35% uptick in HIV cases in Canada compared to 2022. Anecdotal discussions between BC-CfE and HIV experts across Canada indicate the situation continues to deteriorate, with HIV incidence statistics expected to be higher yet again in 2024 and in 2025.
Meanwhile, the United States has substantially decreased funding to domestic programs currently supported by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Medicare, and international programs supported by PEPFAR (the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief) and USAID. UNAIDS estimates another 6.6 million new HIV infections and 4.2 million AIDS-related deaths between 2025 and 2029 if US government cuts continue.
At the National TasP Summit, Dr. Julio Montaner, BC-CfE Executive Director & Physician-in-Chief, called on Prime Minister Mark Carney to take the reins and redouble efforts to end the Canadian HIV/AIDS epidemic by 2030, fully fund Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy (HAART) and PrEP within a national pharmacare plan, and meet the UNAIDS 95-95-95 target for HIV testing, treatment and viral suppression. Meeting the UNAIDS targets* would result in a 90% reduction in HIV/AIDS-related deaths and new infections by 2030, ending the HIV/AIDS epidemic as a public health threat.