The second type of rapid self-diagnostic test would provide the screening and confirmatory results at home. The user would not have to go to a clinic to confirm the results. Immediate access to results is expected to help address the fact that about one third of people tested for HIV do not return to the clinic to receive their results, Merson said. The closest analogy to this type of testis the home pregnancy test. D.C. Nationwide availability of any type of home test would preempt public health laws in many states, according to Fox Fields.
Some states require confidential rather than anonymous testing so that they can notify partners.
Other states allow testing only by trained medical personnel. The North Carolina legislature plans to submit an application to the FDA to block selling of home-based collection devices. Fox Field expects other states to follow. This result would eliminate the need for such people to use health clinics for testing and would avail the scarce resources for people who are more likely to be HIV-positive, thus genuinely in need of the tests. Rapid self-diagnosis, which potentially sidesteps any connection between the consumer and the health care system or even the test manufacturer, makes data collection seem even less likely.