“UK experts call for universal HIV testing in a bid to reduce
infections,” BBC News has said. This widely reported news is
based on recommendations in the Health Protection Agency’s (HPA)
annual report on HIV in the UK. The HPA says that the number of
people living with HIV has reached an estimated 91,500, but more
than 21,000 of these people may not know that they have the
infection. It wants everyone who attends a sexual health clinic
to be tested to reduce the number of people who are unaware that
they have HIV. In areas where rates of HIV infection are high,
the HPA also wants tests for everyone who registers with a new
GP or is admitted to hospital. The HPA recommends that people
most at risk of HIV infection (such as men who have sex with
men; black Africans; and people who inject drugs) should have an
annual HIV test. What did the news reports say? The media
focused on different aspects of the annual figures published by
the HPA ahead of World AIDS Day on December 1. The Daily
Telegraph and BBC News hi