New California Law Promises Instant HIV Results

According to the CDC, of the 2.5 million people who get tested annually for HIV at public sites, 30 percent never return to learn their status. With the rise in HIV transmission, California Assembly member Carole Migden (D-San Francisco) authored and pushed through bill AB1263, which was signed by Governor Gray Davis on Sept. 23. The new law, to take effect in January, will allow implementation of rapid oral HIV testing by counselors at select sites while the test awaits full FDA approval. Rapid oral testing has already been determined to be accurate, according to the bill's backers, and can yield a result in five to 30 minutes.

At the very least, the new law should help curb the number of HIV cases that arise from a person not knowing his or her status. Dr. Thomas Coates, director of the University of California-San Francisco's Center for AIDS Research, said the high "fall-off" rate between testing and getting results means that there is a significant population that just "can't face the possibility of a bad result." But it is the waiting rather than the result that may cause the anxiety, said Coates.

"Even the knowledge of a wait might be an obstacle," said Coates, who praised Migden's legislation as "removing a legal barrier so that counselors, rather than just lab technicians, are allowed to interpret testing results." "HIV infection is once again on the rise," said a statement from Migden. "Rapid HIV testing will allow for more people to learn their HIV status and make important life decisions."

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