MONTGOMERY, Ala. – The Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH) began offering STD/HIV home specimen collection and laboratory testing kits to all Alabama residents ages 12 and older beginning June 7.
The ADPH Division of Sexually Transmitted Disease Prevention and Control has collaborated with Binx Health to implement home delivery STD/HIV specimen collection and laboratory test kits by mail.
The purpose of this initiative, now in its second phase, is to promote STD/HIV testing among individuals at home to strengthen the STD/HIV prevention and control program in Alabama. One in two sexually active young people will acquire an STD before age 25, and most will not be aware of it.
In-home testing allows people to take a test for a sexually transmitted infection or HIV and find out their result in their own home or other private location. It is hoped this availability will help increase awareness of STD/HIV infection for people who would not otherwise get tested and to reach persons most affected.
Alabama residents will be able to request one STD/HIV specimen collection and laboratory test kit every three months. Specimen collection kits are mailed to the patient’s home and contain supplies to collect blood from a fingerstick, urine, and other collection sites. The kit is then mailed to the lab with test results returned to the clinician who acts on results accordingly. This laboratory-conducted test is sensitive enough to detect recent HIV infection.
Specific information about requesting a test, test results, treatment and follow-up is available by clicking here.
