HIV & sexual health
PrEP
Medication taken on an ongoing basis by people who are HIV-negative, to prevent HIV. Highly effective when taken as prescribed — and for most people in Ontario, close to free.
What it will cost you
This is the question that stops people, so it goes first. The appointment itself is billed to OHIP — with an Ontario health card, the visits and the bloodwork are covered the way any family doctor visit is covered.
The medication is a separate question, and usually a program answers it:
OHIP+ covers people 24 and under who do not have private drug coverage. The Ontario Drug Benefit covers people 65 and over, and people on Ontario Works or ODSP. The Trillium Drug Program is for everyone else whose drug costs are high relative to their household income — it has a deductible based on income, and for a lot of people that deductible turns out to be lower than they assume. Many private and workplace plans also cover it.
Most people in Ontario end up paying $0–$2 per prescription. Working out which program applies to you, and filling in the form, is part of the appointment rather than homework we send you away with.
If none of those apply to you, say so — a generic version exists and is substantially cheaper than the figure people usually have in their head, and there are other routes worth checking. The point of this section is that “I assumed I couldn’t afford it” should not be the reason you are not on it.
How it works
PrEP is taken by people who are HIV-negative, on an ongoing basis, so that if an exposure happens the medication is already there. Taken as prescribed it is highly effective at preventing HIV — which is why it has changed what sexual health looks like for a lot of people.
It does not protect against other sexually transmitted infections, which is why regular testing is part of being on it rather than an optional extra. It is not a vaccine and it is not a cure; it works because it is in your system.
A conversation
About what would make PrEP useful for you. There is no threshold you have to meet and no story you have to tell — wanting it is a sufficient reason to discuss it.
Baseline bloodwork
An HIV test plus kidney function and other baseline markers, and usually testing for other infections. Collected in the building.
Your prescription
Once baseline results are back. Which form of PrEP suits you — including whether a daily or a longer-acting option fits your life — is decided with you.
Follow-up every three months
Repeat HIV testing, kidney monitoring, and STI screening. This is the part that most often lapses, so we make it a single visit rather than several.
Who it’s for
Anyone who is HIV-negative and wants to stay that way. It is not restricted by gender, sexual orientation, relationship structure, or how much sex you are having.
Common reasons people start: a partner living with HIV, particularly if their viral load is not suppressed; sex without condoms with partners whose status you do not know; a recent course of PEP; sharing injection equipment; or simply not wanting to think about it every time.
There are different dosing approaches, and one of them is only appropriate for some populations — so which one applies to you is a clinical conversation, not something to pick from a website.
Common questions
Do I need a referral?
No. Walk in, or ask to be booked. You do not need a family doctor first.
How often do I have to come in?
About every three months once you are established, for repeat HIV testing, kidney monitoring and STI screening. We collect the bloodwork here so it is one visit rather than a visit plus a lab trip.
Will this be visible to my family or my employer?
Your health information is confidential and is not disclosed outside your circle of care without your consent. Two practical notes: a private drug plan generates paperwork that a plan holder may see, and that is worth raising with us if it matters, because there are sometimes other routes. And the name on this clinic and on the pharmacy downstairs is deliberately non-descriptive — nothing about the name tells anyone what you were seen for.
What if I stop?
Tell us, so we can stop it safely and talk about what protection looks like afterwards. Stopping and restarting is common and is not a problem — the important part is that restarting involves a test first.
Does it protect against other infections?
No. PrEP is specific to HIV. Regular STI screening is part of PrEP follow-up for exactly this reason, and there are other tools — condoms, vaccination, and in some circumstances doxyPEP — worth discussing.
I might already have been exposed.
Then PEP, not PrEP, is the question, and it is time-critical — it has to start within 72 hours. Read the PEP page first.
Kind Pharmacy on the ground floor handles the dispensing side — including coverage paperwork and refills that arrive before you run out. Kind Clinic and Kind Pharmacy are separate businesses under common ownership. You can fill your prescription anywhere.
Kind Pharmacy →