Appeal court rules NHS does have power to commission prep HIV service

NHS England has lost its appeal over a High Court ruling that it has the legal power to commission PrEP, a "game changer" service in the fight against HIV/Aids.

PrEP, short for "pre-exposure prophylaxis", is a prevention strategy which involves people who are HIV negative but at high risk of infection taking the anti-retroviral drug Truvada to reach optimal levels of protection.

NHS England argued that it cannot legally commission PrEP because local authorities have the responsibility to arrange services to "prevent" the spread of HIV, while its own responsibilities are limited to treating those already assumed to be infected.

Three Court of Appeal judges have rejected the argument and ruled that NHS England does have the power.