This page is general health information, not medical advice. It cannot tell you whether you have an infection. A clinician can, and the testing options on this site are a good place to start.

PrEP is a medicine that people who do not have HIV can take to lower their chance of getting it. In Orlando, it is available through the county health department, nonprofit clinics and community health centers, and several of them offer it at low or no cost.

This guide explains how PrEP works, who it is meant for, the three forms it comes in, what happens at a first visit and how to pay for it. It also lists the Orlando-area places that offer PrEP or help people find it. Whether PrEP fits your life is a conversation for you and a clinician. This page gives you the facts to bring to that conversation.

Key takeaways

PrEP stands for pre-exposure prophylaxis. The CDC says it lowers the risk of getting HIV from sex by about 99 percent when taken as prescribed, and by at least 74 percent among people who inject drugs.
PrEP does not protect against other sexually transmitted infections, so testing and other prevention still matter.
There are daily oral options and long-acting injectable options. A third approach, often called 2-1-1 or on-demand dosing, is not a standard regimen, and only a clinician can say whether it is a fit.
PrEP is prescription-only. Getting started means an HIV test, some blood work and a visit with a prescriber, then regular follow-up.
In Orlando, the Florida Department of Health in Orange County, Miracle of Love, Hope & Help, Orange Blossom Family Health and AHF all list PrEP or PrEP navigation in some form.
Many insurance plans cover PrEP without a copay under federal preventive care rules. Uninsured people have local options, but prices are not always published, so ask the clinic.

In this guide

What PrEP is and how well it works
Who PrEP is for
Types of PrEP: daily, on-demand and injectable
What happens at the first visit and after
How to get PrEP in Orlando
HIV PrEP cost and ways to pay
Testing, PEP and the rest of your sexual health care
Sources

What PrEP Is and How Well It Works

PrEP means taking HIV medicine before a possible exposure so the virus has a much harder time taking hold in the body. The word "pre" matters. PrEP is for people who do not have HIV. It is a different thing from the HIV treatment that people living with HIV take.

How much protection it offers

The CDC says PrEP reduces the risk of getting HIV from sex by about 99 percent when taken as prescribed. For people who inject drugs, the CDC says the reduction is at least 74 percent. The key phrase is "as prescribed." The CDC notes that protection is lower when doses are missed or injections are late, which is why follow-up visits are part of the plan.

How long before it works

The CDC says PrEP does not protect right away. For receptive anal sex, maximum protection from daily oral PrEP is reached at about 7 days. For receptive vaginal sex and for injection drug use, the CDC says it takes about 21 days. Your prescriber will explain what that means for the option you choose.

What PrEP does not do

PrEP works against HIV only. It does not prevent chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis, herpes, HPV or pregnancy. That is one reason regular STI testing is a standard part of PrEP care. Condoms, vaccines such as the HPV and hepatitis A and B vaccines, and prompt treatment for bacterial infections all still do their own jobs. The CDC also issued 2024 guidance on doxycycline taken after sex (doxy-PEP) for some groups to lower the risk of certain bacterial STIs. It is a prescription decision that a clinician makes with you.

HIV is manageable, and prevention is part of that story

HIV is not curable, but it is treatable. People who get diagnosed and stay on treatment can live long, healthy lives, and the CDC says people who keep an undetectable viral load cannot sexually transmit HIV to others. PrEP sits on the prevention side of that picture. It gives people an option they control themselves.

Why Orlando readers ask about it

The Florida Department of Health's FLHealthCHARTS reports that Orange County had 385 new HIV diagnoses in 2025, a rate of 25.1 per 100,000 people. The statewide rate was 15.0 per 100,000 (3,512 new diagnoses). That is a county figure, since no Orlando-only number was found. It is a reminder that HIV prevention tools are a practical local topic. It says nothing about any one person's risk.

Who PrEP Is For

The CDC describes PrEP as an option for adults and adolescents who do not have HIV and who are at ongoing risk of getting it. It spells out several situations where a clinician should discuss PrEP.

Situations the CDC describes

Through sex: having a sex partner who has HIV, especially if the partner's viral load is not consistently undetectable, or having anal or vaginal sex when condoms are not used every time and the status of partners is unknown.
Recent STI: a bacterial STI such as gonorrhea or syphilis diagnosed in the past six months.
Through injection drug use: having a partner who injects drugs, or sharing needles, syringes or other injection equipment.

The CDC also says that anyone who asks for PrEP should be able to talk about it with a clinician, even if they are not sure they fit one of these descriptions. People of every gender and sexual orientation can be a good match. PrEP is not only for any one group.

Deciding is a conversation, not a checklist

This page cannot say whether PrEP is right for you. A prescriber can look at your history, your health, your medicines and your goals. Some people use PrEP for a season of life and stop. Others stay on it for years. Both are normal choices that you can revisit.

PrEP and pregnancy, conception and breastfeeding

People who are pregnant, trying to conceive or breastfeeding, and their partners, can also be PrEP candidates. The CDC guidance addresses these situations, and a prescriber can walk through the options. If you are pregnant, Florida rules also call for HIV and syphilis testing during prenatal care. Florida Administrative Code Rule 64D-3.042 says practitioners providing prenatal care must test for sexually transmissible diseases at the initial exam and again at 28 to 32 weeks of pregnancy. Florida Statute 384.31 lets a patient decline by signed written objection.

Teens and young adults

Florida Statute 384.30 says a parent's or guardian's consent is not a prerequisite for a minor to receive an examination or treatment for a sexually transmissible disease, and the statute sets no minimum age. It also says a minor's consultation, examination and treatment are confidential and may not be shared, for example by sending a bill to a parent or guardian. The statute text is about sexually transmissible disease care. If you are under 18 and want PrEP, ask the clinic how it handles consent, billing and privacy for PrEP visits specifically.

Types of PrEP: Daily Oral, On-Demand and Injectable

There are several ways to take PrEP. Which ones are available depends on your health, your insurance and what the clinic you choose stocks.

Daily oral PrEP

Daily oral PrEP is a medicine taken by mouth every day. The CDC's clinical guidance for PrEP covers FDA-approved oral options, each a combination of two HIV medicines. Because the protection depends on steady use, many people tie it to a routine such as brushing their teeth. Oral PrEP needs a kidney function blood test before starting and during follow-up, because the medicines can affect the kidneys in some people. A prescriber can explain side effects. Many people report few or none, and mild stomach upset in the first weeks is among the more common ones people mention.

On-demand PrEP, sometimes called 2-1-1

On-demand PrEP means taking the medicine around the time of sex rather than every day. The pattern is commonly called 2-1-1. The CDC's clinical guidance does not list it as a standard regimen, and it is not FDA-approved for this use. The studies behind it were done mostly among gay and bisexual men who have sex with men. The CDC does not describe evidence of equal protection for other groups, including people who have vaginal sex and people who inject drugs. Whether it could be considered for you is a decision for a prescriber who knows your situation. If you read about it online and want to try it, bring that up at your visit rather than starting on your own.

Injectable PrEP

Injectable PrEP is a long-acting medicine given by a clinician in a medical office. It is a good fit for some people who find a daily routine hard to keep. The CDC's 2021 PrEP guidelines include a long-acting injectable, and the USPSTF's recommendation was updated to cover injectable PrEP as well. More long-acting options have been introduced since then. Because stocking and scheduling vary by clinic, ask directly which forms are offered at the place you choose. The orange county clinics' public pages do not state which forms they stock.

A quick comparison

Option	How it is taken	What to know
Daily oral	By mouth, every day	Widely available. Needs a kidney function test. Protection depends on steady use.
On-demand (2-1-1)	Around the time of sex	Not a standard CDC regimen. Studied mainly in men who have sex with men. Prescriber decision only.
Injectable	Given by a clinician at visits	No daily pill. Available at some clinics. Ask what is offered and covered.

What Happens at the First Visit and After

A PrEP visit is more routine than many people expect. It looks like other preventive care.

Before you go

Bring a photo ID if the clinic asks for one. The county STD clinic lists a picture ID as required.
Bring your insurance card if you have one, or ask about sliding scale fees if you do not.
Write down the medicines you take, including supplements.
Bring questions. Nothing is too basic.

Tests your clinician will likely order

The CDC's PrEP guidance calls for these before starting:

An HIV test. PrEP is for people who do not have HIV, so this comes first. A clinician will explain the type of test and what result timing means for you.
Kidney function. A blood test, mainly for oral PrEP.
Hepatitis B status. This matters because some PrEP medicines also act on hepatitis B.
STI screening. The CDC recommends testing for STIs such as syphilis, gonorrhea and chlamydia, with the sites tested based on the kind of sex you have.
Hepatitis C testing for some people, and a pregnancy test when relevant.

Follow-up

The CDC guidance calls for regular follow-up. For oral PrEP, that includes HIV testing at least every three months, along with a check on how you are doing with the medicine and periodic kidney tests. Injectable PrEP involves HIV testing at injection visits. Keep these appointments. They are what keeps PrEP both safe and effective, and they give you routine access to STI testing too.

Stopping and restarting

You can stop PrEP, and many people do when their circumstances change. Tell your prescriber before you stop. They can advise on how long protection lasts after the last dose and on whether another prevention plan makes sense. Restarting also begins with a new HIV test.

Privacy

Florida requires licensed practitioners and labs to report certain conditions to the Department of Health. Florida Administrative Code Rule 64D-3.029 lists chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis and HIV infection as reportable. Taking PrEP is not itself a diagnosis. If you are concerned about what is shared and with whom, ask the clinic to explain its privacy practices at check-in.

How to Get PrEP in Orlando

If you are wondering how to get PrEP, the short answer is that you need a prescription from a clinician, and several Orlando-area organizations can provide one or point you to a provider. Details below come from each organization's own pages and from the CDC's GetTested listings. Hours and services change, so call before you go.

Florida Department of Health in Orange County

The county health department's STD clinic is at the Central Health Center, Building 1, 832 West Central Blvd, Orlando, FL 32805. The phone is 407-858-1400. The county's page says the STD clinic is walk-in and first come, first served, with a picture ID required. It lists hours of Monday to Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., closed 12 to 1 p.m. for lunch. Other county pages showed different hours, so call to confirm. The CDC GetTested listing for this site adds rapid HIV testing, hepatitis B and C tests, HPV and hepatitis vaccines and PrEP navigation. Navigation means help finding a PrEP provider, which is different from the clinic itself writing the prescription, so ask what is available on site.

The county also runs the Area 7 HIV/AIDS Program. Its page links to the Florida Department of Health Area 7 PrEP and PEP Locator, a tool for finding providers of pre- and post-exposure prophylaxis. You can reach it from the Area 7 HIV/AIDS Program page.

A second county site, the Lila Mitchell Health Center at 5151 Raleigh St, Ste B, Orlando, FL 32811, phone (407) 723-5004, is listed by the CDC for HIV, chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis testing on a sliding scale. The listing says an appointment is required. It does not list PrEP, and its hours were not published in the sources used for this guide.

Miracle of Love

Miracle of Love is an HIV/AIDS nonprofit. Its Test & Treat page lists low cost PEP, PrEP and STI treatment. It says PrEP is by prescription only and that treatment is provided at the discretion of the doctor. The executive office is at 1301 W Colonial Dr, Ste 201, Orlando, FL 32804, phone (407) 843-1760. Its locations page lists HIV and STI screenings Monday to Thursday, 9:00 to 11:30 a.m. and 1:00 to 5:00 p.m., and Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. The CDC lists free HIV and STI tests there and says an appointment is required. Miracle of Love says it does not perform swabs for gonorrhea or chlamydia and points that testing to the health department. A second site, Stafford House at 711 Seminole Ave, Orlando, FL 32804, phone (407) 532-0070, lists screenings with different hours. Confirm by phone, and see the Test & Treat page.

Hope & Help Center of Central Florida

Hope & Help is a nonprofit medical clinic at 4122 Metric Dr, #800, Winter Park, FL 32792, phone (407) 645-2577. It sits just outside Orlando city limits and serves the Orlando area. Its homepage lists access to PrEP and nPEP, and its testing page says testing is free and no appointment is necessary. Testing runs Monday to Thursday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The page says it accepts most major insurances and can arrange income-based self-pay options. Because the testing page has some copy errors, confirm which tests are offered by phone. See hopeandhelp.org.

Orange Blossom Family Health

Orange Blossom Family Health is a federally qualified health center at 232 N Orange Blossom Trail, Orlando, FL 32805, phone 407-428-5751. The CDC GetTested listing shows rapid HIV testing, hepatitis tests, chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis tests, insurance and Medicaid accepted, a sliding scale and PrEP for the uninsured. It says appointments are required. The clinic's own site says fees follow a sliding scale by household income and that no patient is turned away for inability to pay. Its hours were not published in the sources used here, so call ahead. See obfh.org.

AHF Healthcare Center, Orlando

The AIDS Healthcare Foundation opened a site at 707 E. Colonial Drive in Orlando. In a September 2025 release, AHF said it offers free STD and STI prevention and treatment services and access to PrEP, with onsite labs. The release lists hours of Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. It does not say whether PrEP itself is free, whether walk-ins are welcome or give a phone number, so check with AHF before you go.

The Center Orlando

The Center Orlando, at 942 N Mills Ave, Orlando, FL 32803, runs a walk-in testing center. Its testing page lists HIV and hepatitis C testing at $0, and STI tests at published prices. It does not list PrEP among its services, but it is a convenient place to get tested while you plan next steps. Its testing page lists hours that vary by day, so check the testing information page first.

A note on choosing

Pick the place that fits your schedule, comfort and coverage. Some people prefer an HIV-focused nonprofit. Others prefer a primary care setting or the county clinic. Whichever you choose, ask these questions when you call:

Do you prescribe PrEP on site, or do you refer?
Which forms of PrEP do you offer?
Do I need an appointment, or can I walk in?
What will the visit and lab work cost without insurance, and with it?
Do you accept my plan, or Medicaid?

HIV PrEP Cost and Ways to Pay

Questions about HIV PrEP cost deserve a straight answer: it depends on your coverage, the form of PrEP and the clinic. No Orlando clinic in the sources used for this guide publishes a single PrEP price, so the best move is to call and ask.

If you have private insurance

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force gives PrEP a grade A recommendation for people at increased risk of HIV. Under the Affordable Care Act, most private plans must cover services with an A or B grade without cost sharing. Federal guidance has extended this to the labs and visits that go along with PrEP. Some plans that existed before the law, and some short-term plans, follow different rules. Call your insurer or read your plan documents and ask specifically about PrEP medicine, lab tests and clinic visits.

If you have Medicaid or Medicare

The county STD clinic lists Medicaid and Medicare among its accepted payments, and the CDC listing for Orange Blossom Family Health and the Lila Mitchell Health Center lists Medicaid. Whether a given plan covers the PrEP medicine itself is a question for the plan. No Florida-specific coverage details were available in the sources used for this guide, so confirm with the clinic or your plan before your visit.

If you are uninsured or underinsured

You have several routes:

Sliding scale clinics. The county STD clinic says clinic fees "range from $20 and up," with payment by cash, card, Medicaid or Medicare and a sliding scale after eligibility screening. Orange Blossom Family Health bases fees on household income.
Low-cost and free programs. Miracle of Love lists low cost PEP, PrEP and STI treatment. Hope & Help says it offers income-based self-pay options and discounted medications through its 340B pharmacy program. The CDC GetTested listing for Orange Blossom Family Health shows PrEP for the uninsured.
PrEP navigation. The county STD clinic's CDC listing includes PrEP navigation, and the Area 7 PrEP and PEP Locator helps you find a provider.

Drug makers and national programs also offer help with medicine costs for some people. The clinics above do not describe them on the pages used here, so ask a navigator or the clinic staff whether any apply to you.

Costs of the tests that go with PrEP

PrEP care includes lab work, and those costs vary. For reference, The Center Orlando publishes these prices for its walk-in testing: HIV $0, hepatitis C $0, syphilis $15, chlamydia and gonorrhea $50, and a bundle of syphilis, chlamydia and gonorrhea for $55. These are what that center lists for testing. They are not PrEP prices. Miracle of Love, Hope & Help and Orange Blossom Family Health describe free or low-cost HIV and STI testing in their own listings.

Ways to keep costs down

Ask for a written estimate before you start.
Ask whether the visit, labs and medicine are billed separately.
Ask about a payment plan or sliding scale screening before you decide it is out of reach.
If your coverage changes, tell the clinic early so they can look for alternatives.

PrEP is one tool among several. Here is how the others fit.

Regular HIV and STI testing

Testing is part of PrEP care, and it is also valuable on its own. The CDC GetTested tool at gettested.cdc.gov lets you search for testing sites by ZIP code. For a local rundown with hours, prices and what each place offers, see our guide to STD testing in Orlando. The Orange County rates in FLHealthCHARTS for 2025 are 516.7 per 100,000 for chlamydia (7,937 cases) and 193.7 per 100,000 for gonorrhea (2,975 cases), compared with 410.8 and 156.5 statewide. Bacterial STIs and trichomoniasis are curable with treatment from a clinician, and testing is how people find out whether treatment is needed.

Free at-home HIV test kit

The Area 7 HIV/AIDS Program page lists a free at-home HIV test kit order at knowyourhivstatus.com, with resources at talktestcfl.com. The page does not state eligibility. For questions, the county's number is 407-858-1400. An at-home kit is one way to get tested in private, and a clinic visit is still the next step for PrEP.

PEP: after a possible exposure

PEP, or post-exposure prophylaxis, is HIV medicine started after a possible exposure. It is different from PrEP, and it is time-sensitive. Miracle of Love's Test & Treat page says PEP must start within 72 hours of exposure. If a possible exposure just happened, contact a clinic that offers PEP or an emergency department right away rather than waiting for a PrEP appointment. Miracle of Love and Hope & Help both list PEP or nPEP among their services.

Telling partners and the law

Florida Statute 384.24 says it is unlawful for a person with HIV who knows it, and who has been told they can transmit it sexually, to have sex with another person unless that person has been informed and consented. The statute applies a similar inform-and-consent rule to several other STIs. This applies to people who have HIV, not to people taking PrEP. Anyone with questions about their own situation can ask the health department, a clinic or a lawyer.

Expedited partner therapy

The CDC reports that Florida Statute 384.27 allows expedited partner therapy in set conditions. It lets a clinician provide treatment for a partner of someone diagnosed with an STI when that partner is unlikely to seek care in time. If you are diagnosed with an STI, ask your clinician about it.

Common Questions

Is PrEP only for gay and bisexual men?

No. The CDC describes PrEP as an option for any adult or adolescent without HIV who is at ongoing risk, including women, transgender people and people who inject drugs.

Do I need a prescription?

Yes. PrEP is available only by prescription from a licensed clinician.

Will PrEP protect me from other STIs?

No. It works against HIV only, which is why STI testing is part of PrEP follow-up.

Can I get PrEP and testing on the same day?

It depends on the clinic. Ask when you call. The HIV test comes first, and some blood work may need to come back before the first prescription.

What should I do next?

Choose a clinic from the list above, call it, and ask the questions in the "A note on choosing" section. If you want to start with a test, use the free and low-cost sites listed in this guide or the CDC's GetTested search.

PrEP in Orlando: How to Get It, What It Costs and Who It Is For