By Hugo Greenhalgh
LONDON – Singer Elton John has joined leading British HIV/AIDS charities in calling for wider HIV testing to halt new transmissions in England within a decade, amid concerns that COVID-19 has affected access to tests and medication.
To mark Worlds AIDS Day on Tuesday, England’s first HIV Commission – established by the Terrence Higgins Trust (THT), National AIDS Trust (NAT) and Elton John AIDS Foundation – will publish 20 recommendations to eradicate new HIV cases by 2030.
They call for HIV testing to be standard practice for patients registering with a new doctor, undergoing routine smear tests or being admitted to hospitals’ emergency departments.
Under the charities’ proposals, tests would also be available at pharmacies in areas with a high prevalence of HIV.
“One thing we’ve learned this year is the importance of testing and testing for HIV is at the core of ending new cases of HIV in England,” said John, whose charity has raised almost half a billion dollars in the fight against HIV/AIDS.
“Making HIV testing available and normalized throughout the health service not only means people can be treated but by testing becoming routine, this removes some of the stigma that’s holding us back,” he said in a statement.
