Missouri lawmakers want to allow pharmacists to hand out HIV-prevention drugs

(The Center Square) – Missouri lawmakers plan to update legislation from the 1980s to help remove the stigma of HIV from a time when contracting it almost always was fatal before treatments were developed.

“There have been a number of advancements in medical science that have made HIV a treatable and preventable condition. While we can’t cure HIV, we certainly can implement some policies which prevent spread,” Missouri Rep. Phil Christofanneli, R-St. Charles County, told The Center Square.

This bill would allow pharmacists to prescribe medications that bring the viral load down to an undetectable level even in a person’s blood. The drugs are known as pre-exposure prophylaxis and post-exposure prophylaxis.

“And these are drugs, which, when taken correctly, can make it virtually impossible for someone who is exposed to HIV to contract the disease,” Christofanneli said.

Rep. Greg Razer, D-Kansas City, stated that medication for someone who is HIV positive almost certainly will get their viral load levels down to levels undetectable. The CDC confirmed, if this status is maintained, the person cannot transmit the virus. They are not cured, and they need to keep taking the medication.

HIV takes about 72 hours before it permanently infects a person. If the medicine is in their body, it will kill the virus.

“The problem is currently under state law, it has to be prescribed by a doctor. And if you think you’ve been exposed on a Friday, by the time you can see a doctor, it’s too late,” Razer told The Center Square.

By allowing pharmacists to prescribe the medications, it skips a step for the patient in getting an appointment to get a prescription, especially when time is critical if they have potentially been exposed to HIV, Christofennli said.

Razer’s bill would allow pharmacists, on a limited basis, to distribute a certain amount of the medication over the counter to give the patient time to make an appointment with their doctor to determine the next steps to take.

To be effective pharmacists, would have to conduct a rapid HIV test to make sure the patient isn’t already positive to assure that they get the right medicine.

“When we passed a number of HIV specific statutes, it was back in the 1980s, where the disease was relatively new, and we didn’t have any way to treat it. And it was almost always fatal when contracted. And so many of those things have changed,” Christofanneli said.

Christofanneli is working with Sen.-elect Holly Rehder, R-Sikeston, on a bill to eliminate HIV-specific language and replace it with a general language that captures a number of diseases that are non-airborne transmittable diseases.

The bill also updates Missouri criminal code, which now treats it as a Class A felony to expose another person to HIV, with no provision on if the person consented to the activity resulting in the exposure.

“If someone does expose another person to HIV, and certainly, that is something that should be illegal. But right now, it’s illegal on the level of first-degree murder,” Christofanneli said.

The bills enjoyed bipartisan support in the Legislature before the last session was cancelled early due to the pandemic, he said.

Disclaimer: This content is distributed by The Center Square