HIV Home Tests Are "Another Step Forward" in Preventing Spread of Virus in U.S., Editorial Says

Making at-home HIV tests available -- "at a reasonable price and with adequate provisions for counseling -- would be another step forward" in reducing the spread of HIV in the U.S., a Boston Globe editorial says (Boston Globe, 11/8). An FDA advisory committee on Thursday heard testimony on a proposal to allow consumers to use OraSure Technologies' OraQuick Advance Rapid HIV 1/2 Antibody Test at home. The test requires users to swab their gums and then place the swab in a holder. After 20 minutes, one line appears on the strip if the result is negative and two appear if the result is positive (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 11/8). The "best hope of reducing the frequency of new infections depends on getting more HIV-positive people to know their status and to change their sexual behavior," the editorial says, adding, "Now that antiretroviral drugs have made AIDS more a chronic disease than a death sentence, it makes sense for the FDA to permit over-the-counter sales" of OraQuick (Boston Globe, 11/8).

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