UK law passes sale of HIV home tests

A change in law means that it is now legal for people to test and diagnose themselves with HIV at home. Although no tests exist currently, it is hoped this move will encourage the development of such kits in the UK.

People can already order tests online and send away the results, with their diagnosis being told to them over the phone. However, no tests have been developed that pass European guidelines.

Although testing for HIV at home was approved in September 2013, the law has only just come into effect. The UK leads Europe in terms of developing at-home kits and it is hoped that this change in law could help the estimated 25,000 undiagnosed HIV-positive people living in the UK.

According to the Terrence Higgins Trust HIV charity, tests that can be sold over the counter could be introduced at some point this year or at the start of 2015. Similar tests have been selling in the US since 2012.

It is thought that the results would be determined from a drop of blood from a finger or a mouth swab. 

Dr Michael Brady, medical director at the Terrence Higgins Trust, said that it was a "shame" that there were no viable tests available when the change in law happened but that the move was welcomed.

He added: "With HIV transmission in the UK largely driven by the 22,000 people who remain undiagnosed, anything that provides them with another option to test and access effective treatment is welcome."

A spokesperson for the Department for Health said that the "stigma surrounding HIV" could mean that some people are afraid or reluctant to go to a clinic to be tested. The change in law means that self-test kits are now legal to buy, making the test process "more convenient and discreet", according to the representative.

She added said although no kits available currently meet European standards in the UK, the government "expected this to change" in the next year.