AHF praises the California Governor for signing rapid HIV testing bill

AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), the operator of the largest non-government HIV testing program in California, today praised the California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signing Assembly Bill 221, legislation which updates and streamlines the training of counselors for rapid HIV testing by exempting persons administering finger stick rapid HIV tests from the requirement for certification as a limited phlebotomy technician (LPT). AB 221 has been designated an urgency bill, and as such, it will go into effect immediately rather than early next year.

The bill, authored by Assembly Member Anthony Portantino (D—Pasadena) and co-sponsored by AIDS Healthcare Foundation and the San Francisco AIDS Foundation, eliminates barriers to expanding access to HIV rapid screening by reforming outdated, unnecessary and excessive training standards for HIV counselors who administer the finger stick rapid test.

“In signing AB 221, Governor Schwarzenegger has removed yet another barrier to widespread screening for HIV, ensuring that California offers a favorable environment for people to learn their HIV status and get into life-saving treatment, if needed,” said Michael Weinstein, President of AIDS Healthcare Foundation, co-sponsor of the bill. “We thank the Governor for his swift signature on this important legislation, and also thank Assembly Member Portantino for his leadership authoring and carrying this pragmatic and money-saving bill through to becoming law.”

“AB 221 exempts persons administering HIV rapid tests from the need for certification as a limited phlebotomy technician,” said Joseph Terrill, Domestic Testing Manager for AIDS Healthcare Foundation. “Currently, finger stick rapid tests can only be administered by HIV counselors who are certified as LPTs. Certification requires 20 hours of training and 25 practical supervised finger sticks. The cost of that training, approximately $2,500 per person, has discouraged many test sites and organizations from increasing the number of HIV counselors who are LPTs. AB 221 now brings California law current with improvements in the technology of HIV testing.”

“This bill wisely eliminates unnecessary administrative costs that currently impede expansion of much needed HIV testing here in California,” added Whitney Engeran-Cordova, Director of AHF’s Public Health Division. “AB 221 allows for far greater flexibility in how programs do HIV testing, and we will gladly work with state and local officials to ensure the immediate scale up of this new law.”