Obama Administration Supports HIV Testing Options

[Root Admin]

Obama Administration Supports HIV Testing

In a June 25 press release, The AIDS Institute applauded the Obama Administration for encouraging states to cover voluntary HIV testing under their Medicaid programs. Carl Schmid, Director of Federal Affairs for the AIDS Institute, said that the move could dramatically increase HIV testing in the U.S. “The benefits of HIV testing are well known in terms of both prevention and healthcare outcomes. People who know they are HIV-positive are less apt to infect others, and early diagnosis significantly improves an individual’s health outcome,” said Schmid.

According to the release, in 2006 the CDC issued recommendations stating that voluntary, routine, opt-out HIV testing should be offered in health care settings for all people ages 13 to 64. State Medicaid programs, for the most part, have only covered HIV testing when there are clinical indications of infection or when there are known risk factors present. The official letter released by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) encourages states to cover voluntary, routine testing, as recommended by the CDC.

Sending the letter to all state Medicaid directors was one of the top recommendations of the HIV/AIDS community in proposals by the AIDS in America group to the Obama transition team. The announcement was made in conjunction with National HIV Testing Day, which was June 27th.