(WBBM NEWSRADIO) — Starting in January 2023, many people with HIV in Illinois will have access to a new and effective treatment.
Mike Claffey of the Illinois Department of Public Health said the state's AIDS Drug Assistance Program will include a medication called Cabenuva.
“This can be injected once a month or every other month, and it replaces oral medications that need to be taken on a daily basis, so it's convenient and very effective,” Claffey said.
Claffey said public health officials believe people with HIV will be more likely to take the new drug and help reduce the spread of the virus.
“Having to do it once a month, or every other month, we think is much more convenient,” he said. “It also works well, and we think it will add to helping us lower the rate of HIV in Illinois.”
The Illinois Department of Public Health says about 36,000 people in the state have been diagnosed with HIV, and nearly half of them are enrolled in the state's AIDS Drug Assistance Program.
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