FDA grants tentative approval to low-cost HIV shot

The potential rollout of a more affordable injection to help prevent HIV infection lifts hopes for reduced AIDS deaths in Africa. US regulators’ approval of a cheaper HIV shot has lifted hopes in some of the world’s poorest countries, many of which are reeling from Western aid cuts. The FDA granted tentative approval of a generic lenacapavir, a twice-a-year injection that helps prevent HIV infection. The move will make the drug available for $40 per person a year in 120 low- and middle-income countries, the Associated Press reported. Washington’s funding cuts to some HIV-prevention programs in Africa left efforts there floundering, sparking fears that the continent could see hundreds of thousands of additional deaths from AIDS. A large-scale rollout of the affordable drug could help “ bring an end to the HIV epidemic,” a global health advocate said.