nPEP Program

Emergency PEP can decrease your risk of acquiring HIV if you had anal or vaginal sex or shared drug injection equipment in the past 72 hours with someone who has (or may have) HIV.

You do not need PEP if you were using condoms or taking PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis), or if your partner is taking HIV treatment and has an undetectable level of HIV. PEP is not usually recommended after sex that has a lower risk of spreading HIV, like oral sex.

The sooner you start PEP, the better. Every hour counts.

If you’re prescribed PEP, you’ll need to take it daily for 28 days.

The nPEP program may also cover medications which are prescribed to treat potential side effects of nPEP such as nausea or diarrhea.

The Non-Occupational Post-Exposure Prophylaxis (nPEP) program is designed to provide immediate access to treatment and cover the cost of HIV prophylaxis for individuals who:

• Are HIV-negative
• May have been exposed to HIV through a non-work-related exposure
• Have no health insurance, are underinsured, or can’t afford the out-of-pocket costs.

1. Any prescribing clinician can provide nPEP
2. For evaluation, you can go to:
   • Your primary care provider
   • A community health center
   • An urgent care center
   • A hospital emergency room
3. nPEP is covered by most insurance plans, but for those who are uninsured/underinsured, the nPEP Program can help cover medication costs.
4. The nPEP program works with various sites across the state.

Boston

• Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
• Boston Children’s Hospital
• Boston Medical Center
• Brigham and Women’s Hospital
• Codman Square Health Center
• NeighborHealth
• Fenway Health
• Fenway South End Associates
• Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates — Kenmore
• Massachusetts General Hospital
• Neponset Health Center/Harbor Health Services, Inc.
• Sidney Borum, Jr. Health Center
• Tufts Medical Center
• Whittier Street Health Center

Brockton

• Brockton Neighborhood Health Center

Cambridge

• Cambridge Hospital/Zinberg Clinic

Dorchester

• Dothouse Health

Everett

• Cambridge Health Alliance — Everett Hospital

Fall River

• SSTAR Family Health Center

Falmouth

• Cape Cod Healthcare/Falmouth Hospital

Framingham

• Metro West Medical Center

Holyoke

• Holyoke Health Center

Hyannis

• Cape Cod Healthcare/Infectious Disease Clinical Services
• Health Imperatives Hyannis Family Planning

Lowell

• Lowell Community Health Center
• Lowell General Hospital
• Lowell General Saints Campus

Lynn

• Lynn Community Health Center

Medford

• Lawrence Memorial Hospital

Nantucket

• Nantucket Cottage Hospital

Newton

• Newton-Wellesley Hospital

New Bedford

• Greater New Bedford Community Health Center

Pittsfield

• Berkshire Medical Center — State Clinics

Plymouth

• Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital — Plymouth, ACCESS Program

Provincetown

• Outer Cape Health Services — Provincetown

Somerville

• Cambridge Health Alliance — Somerville Hospital

South Weymouth

• South Shore Hospital

Springfield

• Baystate Medical Center, North Campus
• Brightwood Health Center
• High Street Health Center

Wellfleet

• Outer Cape Health Services — Wellfleet

Worcester

• UMass Memorial Medical Center

nPEP treatment is made available to individuals through healthcare sites in Massachusetts that are enrolled in Community Resource Initiative’s nPEP program.

• Clinical sites or clients should get into contact with the nPEP program if immediate access to nPEP is needed
  • nPEP staff does a case consultation and walks sites or clients through the process
• Download the nPEP Client Application and Consent Form
  • Individuals not seen at one of our enrolled sites should contact nPEP Program staff immediately. Please do not try to use this form at a non-participating pharmacy.
  • The application requires a client signature

Emergency PEP can prevent HIV after a one-time exposure.

If you remain at risk for being exposed to HIV after taking PEP, ask your healthcare provider about taking Pre-exposure prophylaxis (or PrEP) to prevent HIV. PrEP is available as a safe and effective daily pill and as an injection.

For URGENT nPEP access, please contact nPEP program staff

• PrEPDAP/nPEP Senior Program Coordinator- Katt Baker
  • 617.502.1767
• nPEP Fax: 617.502.1701

For individuals requiring urgent access to nPEP after 6pm and on days Community Resource Initiative is closed, please call 617.502.1700 and select option #6 to leave a message for on-call staff. Someone will return your call quickly. The on-call line is not monitored during business hours. If for some reason you have not received a call back, please call again. 

Survivors of sexual assault deserve healthcare in the immediate aftermath of their assault. This includes access to HIV nPEP and other medications to reduce the risk of Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs), and if appropriate, assault-related pregnancy. Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners (SANE), are specially trained and certified professionals who can provide survivors with compassionate and comprehensive care including the option of a quality, trauma-informed, medical-forensic exam. When a patient is referred to the emergency department of a designated SANE site, SANEs will respond when paged by the hospital that a patient, 12 years and older, who has been sexually assaulted, has presented for post-assault care.

For children 11 and younger, please reference Pediatric SANE Program.