How do I find a doctor to prescribe PrEP?

Any GP or sexual health nurse practitioner in Australia can prescribe PrEP but not all doctors know about it. Or you might not be comfortable talking to your regular doctor about PrEP. So it might be best to see a doctor that knows about PrEP. You can search for healthcare professionals in your area that are known to prescribe PrEP, or work in sexual health, here. There you will also find a link to a letter you can take to a doctor if you think they might not know about PrEP that tells them everything they need to know to prescribe you PrEP.

What's involved in getting PrEP?

When you see your healthcare professional to get your script, they will do a few tests to get you started, including HIV, STIs and kidney function. Once you have a script, if you have a Medicare card, you can get your PrEP from a local pharmacy. Or you can import PrEP from online overseas pharmacies – this is an option for people who don’t have a Medicare card. You can find more information about getting PrEP from a local pharmacy and importing PrEP, here.

What if I don't have a Medicare card?

You can still get PrEP. Personal importation is an option for people that don’t have a Medicare card. You can find more information about getting PrEP both through the PBS and through personal importation, here.

If you’re in NSW, you may be able to access PrEP through the MI-EPIC study.

PrEP Information Video

Something else puzzling you? More FAQs below…

Other Frequently Asked Questions

A small number of people experience mild side-effects when they start taking PrEP, such as headaches and upset stomachs. But these usually only last for a couple of weeks. And many people get no side-effects at all.

Only a very small number of people may experience significant changes to their kidney function and problems with their bone density if their bones are not already strong before starting PrEP. These usually occur in people with pre-existing or other medical conditions, but your doctor will check these just to be sure.

You can find more information, here.

If you have a Medicare card, you can get PrEP from a local pharmacy for $41.30 per script (30 pills), or $6.60 per script if you have a concession card (such as a Health Care Card, Commonwealth Seniors Health Card or a Pensioner Concession Card). You can also import PrEP from overseas online pharmacies – this is also an option for people who don’t have a Medicare card. The prices vary depending on the online pharmacy. You can find more information about getting PrEP from a local pharmacy or importing PrEP (including links to find the online overseas pharmacies), here.

We now have several proven ways to prevent HIV, including condoms, PrEP and a person living with HIV having an undetectable viral load, for people to choose the prevention tool (and combinations of tools) that work for them. It can be good to talk to your partners about the prevention tools each of you want to use. And it’s really important that we respect each other’s choices.

Condoms can also reduce the risk of other STIs, but don’t eliminate this risk. That’s why, regardless of the prevention tools someone uses, regular tests for STIs are an important way to control STIs in the community. For people taking PrEP, these regular STIs tests just become part of each visit to the doctor to get their PrEP scripts (usually every 3 months).

You can find more information about the ways to prevent HIV, here.

If you have a question that isn’t answered here Contact Us. We’ll do our best to point you in the right direction.