New Georgia law expands pharmacists’ role in HIV prevention access

A new law takes effect on July 1 that will allow pharmacists in Georgia more flexibility to provide medications to prevent HIV.

However, several details still need to be worked out before the law can expand access as intended.

Eric Rangel is the executive director and health navigator at Latino LinQ, a Latinx LGBTQ organization that provides free HIV testing. He said it is still unclear how the policy will work in practice.

“Which pharmacies are going to participate in this? Is it all pharmacies? Is it particularly with Walgreens? So is it with the Walmart pharmacies?” Rangel said. “How is this looking like exactly? And with each pharmacy, do they have the staffing and the capabilities?”

The Georgia State Board of Pharmacy will determine many of the implementation details, including training requirements and protocols for the state.

In Georgia, nearly 67,000 people are living with HIV, and more than 2,400 were newly diagnosed in 2024. Public health officials believe the new law could increase access to prevention measures by 20-fold, especially in rural areas where access to healthcare is scarce.

Pedro Viloria is the director of community impact and wellbeing with Latino Community Fund Georgia. He said the organization advocated for the law and will remain active in ensuring the policy works for everyone, specifically with language access.

“Language access is one of our biggest missions,” Viloria said. “We believe having access in language to resources is the biggest hurdle, so we want to make sure that that is something that is prioritized.”

Advocates are now focused on smooth implementation of the policy and supporting outreach strategies so that communities know what is available.