A Commentary on Nurse-Led Pre-exposure Prophylaxis Care in Carceral Settings as a Critical Element to Addressing and Ending the HIV Epidemic.

Incarceration is deeply intertwined with the global HIV epidemic. Initiating pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) during incarceration and continuing PrEP upon community reentry is a critical component of the HIV epidemic response and is recommended by the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Despite the impact that offering PrEP to incarcerated populations could have on reducing HIV transmission, particularly given the number of incarcerated individuals likely to be indicated for PrEP use, relatively little is known about the status of PrEP implementation and effective approaches to offering the medication within carceral facilities. Nurse-led approaches to providing PrEP care offer an innovative, cost-effective, and evidence-based approach to addressing many barriers to scaling PrEP use in this unique setting. While some gaps remain about how to best implement nurse-led PrEP care delivery, carceral systems can take steps to expand PrEP use through nurse-led approaches as a key step toward ending the HIV epidemic.