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Every person should know his or her HIV status. This is particularly important for people who know they have been in situations that might have exposed them to the virus, either through sex, used hypodermic needles, or even, before 1986, by blood transfusion or treatment with clotting factors.
A sample of blood for testing can be taken by a physician; appropriate samples of blood can also be self-collected after purchasing a home-collection kit, over the counter, in pharmacies. Testing can also be obtained free of charge from all health departments. The use of home-collection kits or of a health-department's services makes it possible to be tested anonymously, that is, without having to give one's name and address. The results will not appear in the person's medical records, to which insurance companies and perhaps others could obtain access. (Also see "Reporting Laws.")
A positive result, which is based on a screening and confirmatory test, is definitely a reliable result. However, a negative result does not mean with any certainty that a person is free of HIV. He or she must wait several weeks (during which any sexual or needed-sharing risk behavior must be strictly avoided) and return for a second test. This must be done because a recently acquired infection may be present but not yet detectable by the tests typically used to screen people for HIV. For these reasons, while a positive result is not reversible, a negative result is, and the test must be repeated within a few weeks.
Persons who engage in risk behaviors following the confirmation of their negative status should be tested periodically, again, twice each time at several weeks' interval.
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