Studies show that a drug called Truvadacan prevent HIV infections.The pill is taken once a day.Studies showed it was ninety percent effectivewhen people took it every day.It was only half as effectivewhen people did not take it every day.Currently, in the United States,the drug is only approved for use as a treatmentfor people already infected with HIV,the virus that causes AIDS.Now a government advisory committee saysTruvada should become the first drug approvedfor use to prevent HIV.The Food and Drug Administrationis not required to follow the advice ofits Antiviral Drugs Advisory Committee,but usually does.The FDA is expected to decide by June fifteenth.Mitchell Warren, head of the HIV prevention group AVAC,explains that Truvada is a combination pill.MITCHELL WARREN: "It's made up of two different antiretrovirals-- tenofovir and emtricitabine.And those two drugs had already been approvedby the FDA a number of years ago individually,and then about eight years agothey were approved as the combination drug.But all of those approvals related to the use of the drugfor treating people who are already infected with HIV."The advisory committee held a twelve-hour hearingon May tenth to consider the evidence.The committee urged the FDA to approve the drugfor use by those who are consideredat high risk for getting infected.The committee held two separate voteson recommending Truvada.One vote dealt with gay and bisexual men.The other dealt with heterosexual coupleswhere one person has HIV.Mr. Warren says Truvada offers hopefor a new way to fight HIV.MITCHELL WARREN: "If you are at risk of HIV,if you perceive yourself to be at risk,if you're able to take this pill every dayas part of a combination of activities,including getting frequent HIV testing,you can reduce your risk of infection quite substantially."The manufacturer of Truvada, Gilead,would have to produce what is knownas a risk evaluation and mitigation strategy.This would be a plan to help ensure the safeand effective use of Truvada.The plan would include extensive trainingfor health care providers.Some doctors say Truvada is a steptoward ending the threat from AIDS.But some critics say the drugcould give people a false sense of securityand make them less likely to use condoms.Critics say it could also take financial resources awayfrom more cost-effective methods of prevention,like using condoms.Truvada currently sells for about fourteen thousand dollars a year.The drug would cost much less in developing countries,possibly several hundred dollars a year.But that could still be too high for some countries.And that's the VOA Special English Health Report.