Reducing Your HIV Risk: Senate Bill Would Speed Up Treatment for Exposed Health Care Workers
New legislation introduced in the state Senate would permit immediate testing of the patient—with or without consent—when a health care worker may have been exposed to the HIV virus.
Senate Bill 1261, introduced by Sen. Ted Erickson (R-Delaware) at the urging of the Pennsylvania Medical Society, would repeal a provision of Act 148 of 1990, the HIV Confidentiality Act, requiring patient consent when a health care worker is exposed.
Obtaining patient consent can delay testing for days when preventive treatment should begin within two to four hours of exposure. The delay wasn’t a problem when Act 148 was adopted, because there were no accurate rapid HIV tests or preventive treatments. Now, both are widely available.
The Pennsylvania Medical Society’s House of Delegates in October 2007 adopted a resolution to pursue legislation removing the patient consent requirement because accidental exposure to potential HIV infection through contaminated needles and other sharp objects remains a significant problem for physicians and other health care workers.
The bill would require documented patient consent in all other cases but would allow opt-out testing, in which patients are informed that they will be tested for HIV unless they refuse. Obtaining a separate signed consent, as currently required, can be a barrier to testing, said Margaret Hessen, MD, testifying before the Senate Public Health and Welfare committee on behalf of the Pennsylvania Medical Society. Dr. Hessen is a member of the State Society’s Commission on Public Health.
The bill also aims to incorporate HIV testing into routine medical care, as recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Routine screenings would allow for earlier diagnosis, which is the key to breaking the HIV/AIDS epidemic, Dr. Hessen said.
Last Updated: 5/20/2008