PEPFAR Laboratory Implementation Strategy as a Component of PEPFAR's 5-Year Strategy.

Abstract

Past United States President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) laboratory investments for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) epidemic response, in collaboration with partner governments and other stakeholders, have had a fundamental and substantial impact on overall clinical and public health laboratory capacity in countries. These innovations have been and continue to be leveraged to improve the functioning of entire health systems, including providing essential high-quality clinical diagnostics for multiple diseases and responding to outbreaks and pandemics. This was recently demonstrated in the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic and mpox outbreaks, during which existing PEPFAR-supported laboratory systems were leveraged to support diagnostic development and implementation, while remaining focused on sustaining past HIV and tuberculosis gains. Building on these gains, the PEPFAR Laboratory Implementation Strategy shares guidance on how PEPFAR's 5 × 3 strategic approaches could be used to continue working closely with national governments and other global health stakeholders to support countries' national public health systems in an integrated manner to sustain current HIV/AIDS gains and strengthen local capacity in anticipation of future pandemic preparedness and response.