This Toronto pharmacist is fighting to make anti-HIV drugs cheaper and more accessible

A Toronto pharmacist is pushing to make a generic equivalent of an expensiveanti-HIV drug cheaper and more accessible to the public and especially to gay men.

Michael Fanousworks primarily with the LGBT community in Toronto. He says around 25 per cent of gay men in Toronto are infected with HIV and another 85 per cent of sexually active gay men are at risk of getting the virus.

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Taking preventative medication calledpre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, can dramatically reducethe riskof contracting HIV if taken every day as prescribed. But Fanous has found through his conversations with those he works with, largely gay and bisexual men, that not everyone feels they can easily access it.

"We can prevent HIVwith this medication but the number one reason many men don't take it is the cost," he said.

Currently,PrEPis sold by pharmaceutical giantGileadunder the brand nameTruvada.

On a regular basis, Fanousis having conversations with people in the community, especially gay and bisexual men, about the drug and its benefits.

Part of his outreach includes raising awareness among doctors, who he saysadvocate for testing and treatment of HIV rather than educate and suggesteffective prevention strategies like PrEP.

Ryan Lisk, a manager of community health programs at the AIDS Committee of Toronto, saysPrEPcosts around $1,000 a month.

He says the hope is that itsgeneric equivalent will be available as soon as July. Andif all goes according to plan, he hopes, it will cost a quarter of that amount.

"The challenge that gay men are having is that it becomes accessible only for people whohave money and great benefitplans... So this is a huge game-changerforgay men," he said.

Ron Rosenes has been living withHIV for most of his life. He says the community of gay men couldgreatly benefit from a cheaper equivalent to PrEP.

"We need access to affordable PrEP," he said. "We need it to be available in this province and acrossthe countryto the people most at risk and we need it to be prescribed by a wide variety of healthcare providers."

For Fanous, the fight is personal as well as professional.He himself takes the drugevery day.

"This is my community, these are my friends, partners and family members that are affected by HIV," Fanous said. "I'm at risk myself as a gay man of being infected with HIV."