New HIV transmissions in England have fallen by almost a third since 2019, while fewer people remain unaware of their HIV status as a result of increased testing across the country, according to an update on the HIV Action Plan for England published recently.
As part of the HIV Action Plan, NHS England is investing £20 million in the three years from 2022/23 to 2024/25 to expand bloodborne virus opt out testing in emergency departments in the local authority areas across the country with the highest prevalence of HIV: London, Brighton, Manchester, Salford and Blackpool. The report published today shows this expanded testing has helped diagnose 2,000 cases of blood-borne viruses - including 343 people living with HIV - in the first year of the programme.
Another major commitment was the investment of over £3.5 million to deliver a national HIV prevention programme between 2021 to 2024 to raise awareness of HIV and sexually transmitted infections testing and prevention strategies. Reducing undiagnosed HIV infection through testing not only provides access to treatment that saves lives but means people who obtain undetectable levels of the virus cannot pass on HIV. During National HIV Testing Week 2023 almost 22,000 HIV testing kits were ordered - with self-testing kits (providing instant at-home results) available for the first time.
Health Minister Neil O’Brien said: “It’s hugely encouraging to see the progress made so far in our goal to end new HIV transmissions as well as AIDS and HIV-related deaths in England by 2030. Since the HIV Action Plan was launched in 2019, we have been working hard to reduce new infections by tackling stigma and urging more people to get tested, as well as helping people to access potentially life-saving treatment.
According to the HIV Action Plan monitoring and evaluation framework published by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) in December 2022, the estimated number of people living with undiagnosed HIV in England fell by more than one thousand from 2019 to 2021, from 5,600 to 4,400. The number of people attending sexual health services due to their partner receiving a notification of positive HIV diagnosis also fell by almost half for the same time period, from 1,558 to 820.
To drive progress, a national HIV Action Plan Implementation Steering Group (HIVAP ISG) has been created and is chaired by Professor Kevin Fenton, who has also been appointed the government’s Chief Advisor on HIV. The national HIV Action Plan Implementation Steering Group includes all key partners, including the voluntary sector. DHSC has also created a Community Advisory Group, chaired by the National AIDS Trust and the LGBT Foundation, to advise the HIV Action Plan Implementation Steering Group through the lifetime of the HIV Action Plan.
Many areas of the country have replicated this national action regionally, providing leadership and oversight of work underway within local systems. This has seen regional HIV action plans developed in areas such as the South West, working groups set up in the Midlands, stocktakes of testing activity and action via Sexual Health Networks in the South East and North East and Yorkshire, or regional HIV Action Planning Workshops as in the East of England.