Congress receives praise for backing routine HIV tests for veterans

BETHLEHEM, Pa. Congress’ recent passage of the Veterans Mental Health and Other Care Improvements Act of 2008 earned praise for its provision to enable routine HIV testing throughout the Department of Veterans’ Affairs healthcare system from a major manufacturer of HIV tests Monday.

OraSure Technologies, which makes oral antibody tests, praised the bill’s passage. The bill eliminates a Veterans Benefits and Services law from 1988 that has limited the implementation of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s 2006 guidelines for routine HIV testing, counseling and early diagnosis.

“We applaud Congress’s efforts to remove the barriers that have limited the access to HIV screening and counseling for all veterans,” OraSure president and chief executive officer Douglas Michels said in a statement.