The BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS national Summit raises alarm about rising incidence of HIV in Canada and threats to global progress

Delegates call on Prime Minister to end the Canadian epidemic and lead the worldwide HIV response in light of dramatic US cuts to treatment and care

VANCOUVER, BC, June 6, 2025 /CNW/ - The BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS (BC-CfE) is hosting a national Summit of medical and HIV experts to raise the alarm about the rising incidence of HIV in Canada, the immense threat that US cuts to HIV programs pose to millions at risk of disease and death globally, and the need for Canadian leadership to help prevent a resurgence in HIV/AIDS.

Despite the groundbreaking work done to implement the BC-CfE's Treatment as Prevention^® (TasP^®) and HIV Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) programs in many jurisdictions, Canada is losing ground to HIV/AIDS across the country. The latest available government statistics for 2023 show a 35% uptick in HIV cases in Canada compared to 2022. Anecdotal discussions between BC-CfE and HIV experts across Canada indicate the situation continues to deteriorate, with HIV incidence statistics expected to be higher yet again in 2024 and in 2025.

Meanwhile, the United States has substantially decreased funding to domestic programs currently supported by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Medicare, and international programs supported by PEPFAR (the US President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief) and USAID. UNAIDS estimates another 6.6 million new HIV infections and 4.2 million AIDS-related deaths between 2025 and 2029 if US government cuts continue.

At the National TasP Summit, Dr. Julio Montaner, BC-CfE Executive Director & Physician-in-Chief, called on Prime Minister Mark Carney to take the reins and redouble efforts to end the Canadian HIV/AIDS epidemic by 2030, fully fund Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy (HAART) and PrEP within a national pharmacare plan, and meet the UNAIDS 95-95-95 target for HIV testing, treatment and viral suppression. Meeting the UNAIDS targets^* would result in a 90% reduction in HIV/AIDS-related deaths and new infections by 2030, ending the HIV/AIDS epidemic as a public health threat.

"The Prime Minister has called for cost-effective, nation-building projects to improve the lives of Canadians and show leadership," said Dr. Montaner. "Redoubling efforts to defeat HIV/AIDS in Canada by 2030 fits the bill. It saves lives, prevents disease progression, improves quality of life and saves money. We have a plan. We need the Prime Minister's help to get it over the finish line."

In addition, Canada must step up to better support the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, to provide much-needed international leadership in a renewed and reinvigorated fight against HIV/AIDS. Weakening global efforts for HIV prevention, treatment, and support are already having an impact in British Columbia and throughout Canada. Domestically, HIV prevention and treatment strategies have saved countless lives and dramatically improved the lives of people living with and at-risk of HIV. However, many of Canada's new HIV cases relate to domestic and international migration, demonstrating the need for federal unity in Canada's HIV response and better support for the Global Fund.

"HIV does not respect provincial, Canadian or international borders," said Summit co-chair Dr. Val Montessori, BC-CfE Director of Clinical Education. "With new HIV diagnoses rising across Canada, the need is greater than ever to implement proven HIV prevention and treatment strategies. By working together, we can strengthen the national HIV response in Canada and around the world,  improve the lives of people living with HIV, and prevent new cases."

*About the UNAIDS 95-95-95 Targets

Based on the Treatment as Prevention strategy developed by the BC-CfE, the United Nations Joint Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) set out ambitious targets in 2014 to end the AIDS epidemic globally by 2030. This culminated in the UN 95-95-95 Targets, which established that countries ensure 95% of people living with HIV are diagnosed, 95% of those diagnosed are on treatment, and 95% of those on treatment are virally suppressed, by the year 2025. Meeting the UN Targets would change the trajectory of the epidemic so that we would see a 90% reduction in HIV/AIDS related deaths and new HIV infections by 2030, which would herald the end of the HIV/AIDS epidemic as a public health threat.

About the British Columbia Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS

The BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS (BC-CfE) is Canada's largest HIV/AIDS research, treatment and education facility – nationally and internationally recognized as an innovative world leader in combating HIV/AIDS and related diseases. The made-in-BC Treatment as Prevention^® strategy (TasP^®) pioneered by BC-CfE, and adopted by UNAIDS since 2011, inspired the ambitious global target for HIV treatment – known as the United Nations' 90-90-90 Target by 2020 and current UN 95-95-95 Target by 2025 – to end AIDS as a pandemic by 2030. The BC-CfE is applying TasP^® to therapeutic areas beyond HIV/AIDS, including viral hepatitis and addiction, to promote Targeted Disease Elimination^® as a means to contribute to healthcare sustainability. The BC-CfE works in close collaboration with key stakeholders, including government, health authorities, health care providers, academics, and the community to decrease the health burden of HIV/AIDS, hepatitis C and addictions across Canada and around the world.

SOURCE British Columbia Centre for Excellence In HIV/AIDS

For more information, please contact: Cameron Collins, BC-CfE media relations, [email protected]