The End the Epidemic (ETE) campaign started in 2014 and the goal was to reduce new HIV infections to 750 per year by the year 2020. According to the ETE website statistics, in 2022, there were 2,318 New Yorkers newly diagnosed with HIV. Many New Yorkers are living with HIV but remain unaware of their status. In some cases, these individuals are actively engaging with providers within the health care system but are not being offered HIV testing. According to the New York State HIV/AIDS Annual Surveillance Report 2022, there were 1,060 New Yorkers newly diagnosed with AIDS. It takes an HIV infection approximately five to ten years to progress to AIDS if no medical intervention is made. This is lacking from both the standard of care and New York State regulation.
Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) whose routes of transmission are the same as those for HIV have skyrocketed, increasing each year for the past seven years. Furthermore, the total number of HIV tests that are administered in New York State are not calculated. Only those tests that are positive for the HIV virus are counted, which means that the possibility exists that the lower infection rates of HIV could be a reflection of a decrease in testing. "The US STI epidemic shows no signs of slowing," said Dr. Leandro Mena, Director of the CDC's Division of STD Prevention. This is why testing for HIV is so important at this time.
NYS Public Health Law mandates the offer of HIV testing to all patients aged 13 or older receiving primary care services at an outpatient clinic or primary care services from a physician, physician assistant, nurse practitioner or midwife; all who provide primary care, or their representatives, regardless of the setting. The offer of HIV testing applies to nursing homes, substance use disorder treatment facilities, college health services, retail clinics, urgent care centers, employee health services, and STD clinics that provide primary care. Settings and clinicians required to make the offer include:
Inpatient and emergency departments of an Article 28 licensed hospital.
Outpatient departments of an Article 28 licensed hospital providing primary care services.
Diagnostic and treatment centers licensed under article 28 providing primary care services.
Physicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners or midwifes providing primary care.
Primary care means the medical fields of:
• Family medicine
• General pediatrics
• Primary care
• Internal medicine
• Primary care obstetrics/gynecology
It is not sufficient to refer the patient to testing outside of the facility.
The offer of the HIV test must be documented in the patient's medical record.
Click the button below to see End the Epidemic statistics.
Requiring already understaffed healthcare facilities to stop their current scope of duties and perform HIV and HCV testing and the necessary linkage (to care) can be very time consuming… time that they often do not have.
HIV and HCV testing requires training and education, and subsequent updates to that training. It requires managing the tests and the testing data, communicating with test suppliers and care providers, knowledge of PrEP, PrEP AP, PEP, ADAP (The AIDS Drug Assistance Program), ADAP Plus, APIC, Home Care, pharmaceutical company co-pay programs, patient advocacy programs, PNAP, the (Partner Notification Assistance Program), public health laws that regulate HIV and HCV testing, and the confidentiality laws that correspond to them.
Please contact Prevention Healthcare Services if your organization needs to offer HIV and HCV testing to your patients.
On July 27, 2018, Governor Andrew Cuomo announced the establishment of the Elimination Task Force to fight the "Silent Epidemic" of Hepatitis C. "This holistic, first-in-the-nation approach to eradicating hepatitis C is modeled on our ongoing efforts to end the AIDS epidemic and will improve the health of many of the most vulnerable among us including people battling drug addiction," Governor Cuomo said. "We are going to end hepatitis C in New York State."
Hepatitis C-related deaths have exceeded HIV-related deaths in the state outside of New York City since 2007; injection drug use is the most common risk factor, and the opioid epidemic has begun a new rise in new hepatitis C cases.
The New York State Hepatitis C Testing Law enacted on January 1st, 2014, stated that:
A hepatitis C screening test must be offered to every individual born between 1945 and 1965.
Beginning May 3, 2024, New York State will require that all persons 18 years of age and older and persons under the age of 18 with a risk, be offered a screening test for hepatitis C. These new requirements align New York State with the current Centers for Disease Control and Prevention HCV screening recommendations.
Settings and clinicians required to make the offer include:
Inpatient and emergency departments of an Article 28 licensed hospital.
Outpatient departments of an Article 28 licensed hospital providing primary care services.
Diagnostic and treatment centers licensed under article 28 providing primary care services.
Physicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners or midwifes providing primary care.
If an individual accepts the offer of a HCV screening test and the hepatitis C antibody screening test is reactive, the health care provider should immediately perform a hepatitis C diagnostic test (HCV RNA). If the diagnostic test is positive, the provider should refer the individual to a healthcare provider who can provide follow-up care.
Letting a patient know that outside testing is available is not an offer of testing. An example of an offer would be, "We are routinely offering hepatitis C testing to all persons born between 1945 and 1965. Would you like to be tested for hepatitis C?"
Click the button below to see Hepatitis C statistics in New York State.
Education is a powerful tool and often the first step needed to inspire patients, students,
and average citizens to be tested for, and to seek treatment of HIV and HCV.
Educating students and patients on the prevalence of sexually transmitted infections
by providing them with objective statistics and preventative measures
can keep them from becoming a statistic.
Educating patients on the availability of HIV & HCV testing, harm reduction, PrEP (pre-HIV exposure medication), and PEP (post-HIV exposure medication) can help prevent the transmission of HIV and HCV.
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