Georgia law lets pharmacists prescribe HIV prevention medications starting July 1

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) — Georgia pharmacists will be allowed to prescribe HIV prevention medications starting July 1 under a new state law, a change public health leaders say could expand access in rural communities where clinics are scarce.

Gov. Brian Kemp recently signed Senate Bill 195, which authorizes pharmacists to prescribe pre-exposure prophylaxis, known as PrEP, and post-exposure prophylaxis, known as PEP. The medications are used to prevent HIV before and after potential exposure respectively.

At Little Five Points Pharmacy in Atlanta, pharmacist Ira Katz said the shift reflects how far HIV treatment and prevention have come since the 1980s.

“Back in the mid-80s, we were losing patients left and right. We didn’t have the medications,” Katz said.

Katz said today’s prevention options can be faster, more private, and closer to home.

“HIV is not a death sentence anymore,” he said.

Emory University Rollins School of Public Health associate professor Natalie Crawford said pharmacies could help close access gaps across the state, especially outside metro areas.

“Some people who live in rural areas have to drive over an hour away, whereas there is a pharmacy within a 5 or 10 minute drive,” Crawford said.

Crawford said moving prevention services into pharmacies could dramatically expand access, estimating it could increase availability 20-fold.

Georgia’s HIV burden remains significant, according to the Georgia Department of Public Health. The agency reported 66,896 Georgians were living with HIV at the end of 2024, and 2,485 people were newly diagnosed in 2024.

Crawford urged Georgians to use the new pathway once it becomes available.

“What I really want people to understand is now that we have the pathway for this, let’s go get it,” she said.

The effort also includes a pilot program called “Rx for Change,” announced by public health leaders from Emory’s Rollins School of Public Health, AIDS United, the Black Public Health Academy and the National Pharmaceutical Association. Organizers say Rx for Change is a community-centered strategy that will train pharmacy teams and strengthen partnerships with community-based organizations to expand access to PrEP and other HIV prevention services in communities disproportionately impacted by HIV.

The pilot will begin in Georgia and Louisiana, two states experiencing high rates of new HIV diagnoses, and Louisiana enacted a similar pharmacy law in 2024.

Supporters say the goal is to help translate SB 195 into real-world access by integrating HIV testing, PrEP initiation, and prevention education into routine pharmacy care.

Katz said pharmacists can also play a key role in counseling patients on how to take the medications.

“This is where I think we as pharmacists come in to make sure that the patients understand how best to take it,” he said.

Public health leaders said the focus now shifts to implementation, including training, reimbursement, and pharmacies opting in, and they encouraged the public to ask about PrEP at local pharmacies as the rollout begins.