Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure those diagnosed with HIV through opt-out testing in emergency departments are effectively referred for treatment, whether their diagnosis is new or previously known.

In the first 18 months, the NHS England HIV opt-out testing programme in local areas with extremely high HIV prevalence has preliminarily identified 578 people newly diagnosed with HIV and 344 people previously diagnosed with HIV but disengaged from care.

Opt-out testing in emergency departments is finding people living with HIV who were otherwise unlikely to have been diagnosed without presentation to health services with specific complications, meaning they can access treatment earlier. This access to treatment improves their longer-term health outcomes and saves lives.

All non-negative results from HIV opt-out testing in emergency departments are reported to and managed by relevant specialist teams who will notify the individual, organise confirmatory testing and facilitate linkage to care and support. Local standard operating procedures should be informed by national standards for the care of people living with HIV.