Why Knowing Your HIV Status Matters

Celebrated on June 27th every year, National HIV Testing Day serves as a good reminder to all of the importance of knowing your HIV status.

This year’s theme of “Take the Test & Take the Next Step” emphasizes the fact that knowing your HIV status—be it positive or negative—helps you choose options to stay healthy.

For example, people who receive a negative test result can take advantage of HIV prevention tools such as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), condoms, and other sexual health services such as vaccines and testing for sexually transmitted infections. People who receive a positive test result can rapidly start HIV treatment (antiretroviral therapy, or ART) to stay healthy and use other prevention strategies to help prevent the spread of the virus and other STDs.

HIV can affect anyone regardless of sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, gender, or age. While the rate of new HIV infections in the U.S. has declined steadily since 2016, it’s estimated that 1.2 million Americans have HIV today. Of that 1.2 million, an estimated 13 percent of them don’t know it.

According to its latest HIV testing guidelines, the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) recommends testing for:

• Everyone between the ages of 13 and 64 should get tested for HIV at least once as part of their routine health care.
• Those with certain ongoing risk factors – such as having more than one sex partner since their last HIV test or having sex with someone whose sexual history they don’t know – should get tested annually. Some sexually active gay and bisexual men may benefit from more frequent testing (e.g., every 3 to 6 months).
• All pregnant people, as part of proactive prenatal care, should receive certain blood tests to detect infections and other illnesses, such as syphilis and Hepatitis B.

Today, there are more free, easy, fast, and confidential HIV testing options available than ever before. Testing, including Rapid and mail-in self-testing, are covered by health insurance without a co-pay, as required by the Affordable Care Act. If you do not have medical insurance, some places offer free or low-cost tests.

To find a testing center near you, contact the AIDS Project of Southern Vermont by clicking here or calling (802) 254-4444. 

For help understanding your testing options or results, and guidance on sharing results with family, friends, loved ones, and healthcare providers, visit the CDC’s HIV Testing Page.

Marie George, MD is an Infectious Disease Specialist in Southwestern Vermont Healthcare in Bennington, VT.