Awareness and use of pre-exposure prophylaxis and awareness of treatment-as-prevention among adults in the United States

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: Benchmarks for public awareness of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) Treatment-as-Prevention (TasP) are sparse, and evidence about whether public health communication campaigns are associated with awareness and use is lacking. This study assessed whether exposure to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) Let's Stop HIV Together campaign was associated with self-reported PrEP and TasP awareness and PrEP use.

METHODS: Data were drawn from the 2022-2024 SpringStyles, a probability-based online survey of adults in the United States. Weighted logistic regression models assessed PrEP awareness, TasP awareness, and PrEP use by sociodemographic characteristics, prior HIV testing, and campaign exposure.

RESULTS: Awareness of PrEP and TasP increased from 2022 to 2024, reaching 38.0% and 39.0%, respectively. Respondents who recalled the CDC's campaign were significantly more likely to be aware of PrEP (52.9% vs 34.1%) and TasP (55.9% vs 35.8%), and to report PrEP use (1.9% vs. 1.0%).

CONCLUSIONS: These nationally representative, repeated cross-sectional estimates reveal gains in PrEP and TasP awareness over time. The association of campaign exposure with PrEP and TasP awareness and PrEP use underscores the importance of federally funded health communication initiatives to end the HIV epidemic in the United States.