Vancouver AIDS experts respond to HIV outbreak in rural Indiana

The B.C. Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS (BC-CfE) is taking its expertise to rural U.S.A.

Joining forces with the Indiana University School of Medicine, the centre is helping respond to a highly concentrated HIV epidemic driven by the injection of prescription opioids in Austin, Indiana.

With an estimated population of 4,200, Austin is located in the state’s Scott County. Approximately 10 percent of its population injects opioids on a daily basis. More than 184 new HIV cases have been identified since December 2015-the worst outbreak in state history.

The joint effort allows the BC-Cfe to apply its HIV Treatment as Prevention model to the rural setting.

Although neither a cure nor a vaccine for HIV/ AIDS exists, several advances in HIV treatment have been achieved over the past two decades. Most significant among them was the development of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), a combination of antiretroviral drugs that can fully suppress HIV replication. It therefore renders the number of viral copies present in a patient’s blood undetectable.

Shortly after the initial roll out of HAART in 1996, data from Taiwan and British Columbia suggested that new HIV diagnoses had unexpectedly decreased. Most intriguingly, in British Columbia, the effect of HAART on new cases was apparent despite a steady rise in syphilis rates. The data suggested that HAART could be much more effective in reducing HIV transmission than previously suspected.

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During the Canada Post strike announced September 25, 2025, the following measures will be undertaken to minimize service disruption to BC-CfE clients and providers.

  • The BC-CfE Laboratory has transitioned to private courier for delivery of outgoing reports and documents. Results required urgently can be faxed upon request. (Lab Contact Information: Phone 604-806-8775; FAX 604-806-9463)
  • The BC-CfE Drug Treatment Program (DTP) will fax outgoing forms and documents to the provider’s office. (DTP Contact Information: Phone 604-806-8515; FAX 604-806-9044)
  • St. Paul’s Hospital Ambulatory Pharmacy has transitioned to private courier for delivery of medications. We recommend requesting medication at least 2 weeks in advance in case of delivery delays, particularly to rural/remote parts of BC. (Contact Information: Phone 1-800-547-3622; FAX 604-806-8675)

During the Canada Post strike, we recommend that documents be faxed or couriered to our sites, versus utilization of regular mail service

The BC-CfE Laboratory is streamlining reporting processes for certain tests in order to simplify distribution and record-keeping, and to ensure completeness of results. Beginning September 2, 2025, results for the ‘Resistance Analysis of HIV-1 Protease and Reverse Transcriptase’ (Protease-RT) and ‘HIV-1 Integrase Resistance Genotype’ tests will be combined into a single ‘HIV-1 Resistance Genotype Report’.
For more details and example reports, please click on the button below