The provision of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) in the British National Health Service to prevent HIV infection has been the subject of much controversy.
AIDS campaigners have lobbied for the NHS to approve the treatment to prevent the spread of HIV among members of high-risk groups such as gay men.
[3] In 2016, the High Court determined that NHS England had the power to provide PrEP treatment to these groups.
[5] NHS England lost the appeal,[6] with Lady Justice Eleanor King and Lord Justices Andrew Longmore and Nicholas Underhill finding in favour of the National AIDS Trust on 10 November 2016,[7] with Public Health England announcing a 3-year large-scale trial seeking to enroll over 10,000 people a few weeks later.
[8] Subsequent freedom of information requests showed that NHS England spent over £100,000 fighting the case,[9] not including NAT's legal fees, estimated at a further £8,000.