September 21, 2006 -- CDC Recommends Routine HIV Screenings in Healthcare Settings

New recommendations released today by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) would make voluntary HIV screening a routine part of medical care for patients aged 13 to 64. New approaches to early detection are needed, the CDC said, because, currently, a quarter-million Americans with HIV don’t know they have it and 40 percent of those who are diagnosed have been infected for a year or more before they find out, making it too late for them to fully benefit from treatment or to protect their partners. The new recommendations, developed over a three-year period, call for:

• HIV screening for all patients, regardless of risk;
• A voluntary “opt-out” approach—testing must be voluntary and undertaken only with the patient’s knowledge;
• Simplified testing procedures, eliminating the need for pre-testing counseling and separate written consent;
• Enhanced screening for pregnant women to prevent mother-to-child transmission.

The CDC notes that the new recommendations address HIV screening in healthcare settings only and “do not apply to non-clinical settings such as community centers and outreach programs.”

“Revised Recommendations for HIV Testing of Adults, Adolescents, and Pregnant Women in Health Care Settings,” are being published in the September 22, 2006, issue of the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report and can be accessed at http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr.