What Can You Expect When You Get an HIV Test?

Your HIV testing experience might be a little different depending on where you get tested.

HIV Testing in a Health Care Setting or Lab

If you take a test in a health care setting or a lab, a health care provider or lab technician will take a sample of your blood or oral fluid. If it’s a rapid test (oral fluid or finger stick), you may be able to wait for the results, but if it’s a laboratory test, it can take several days for your results to be available. Your health care provider or counselor may talk with you about your risk factors, answer any questions you might have, and discuss next steps with you, especially if your rapid test result is positive.

• If the test comes back negative, and you haven’t had an exposure during the window period for the test you took, you can be confident you don’t have HIV.
• If your HIV test result is positive, the lab will conduct follow-up testing, usually on the same sample as the first.

HIV Testing Outside of a Health Care Setting or Lab

If you get an HIV test outside of a health care setting or lab (such as at a community-based organization, mobile testing van, or elsewhere) you will likely receive a rapid HIV test.

• If the test comes back negative, and you haven’t had a possible exposure during the previous 3 months, you can be confident you don’t have HIV.
• If your test result is positive, you should go to a health care provider to get follow-up testing. Counselors providing the test should be able to answer questions and provide referrals for follow-up testing as well. You can use the HIV.gov locator to find a health center near you.

Learn about the different places where you can get an HIV test.

Is HIV Self-Testing an Option?

Yes. HIV self-testing allows people to take an HIV test and find out their result in their own home or other private location. There are two kinds:

• A Rapid Self-Test is done entirely at home or in a private location and can produce results within 20 minutes. You can buy a rapid self-test kit at a pharmacy or online . The only rapid self-test currently available in the U.S. is an oral fluid test.
• A Mail-In Self-Test includes a specimen collection kit that contains supplies to collect dried blood from a fingerstick at home. The sample is then sent to a lab for testing and the results are provided by a health care provider. Mail-in self-tests can be ordered through various online merchant sites. Your health care provider can also order a mail-in self-test for you.

Check to see if your local health department or other organization near you is providing rapid self-tests for a reduced cost or for free. Directly purchased self-tests may not be covered by private health insurance or Medicaid. Be sure to check with your insurance provider and your health care provider about reimbursement for tests that are self-purchased.

Note: State laws regarding self-testing vary and may limit availability. Check with your provider for additional testing options.

Learn more about HIV self-testing and which one might be right for you.

The COVID-19 pandemic has made it more difficult for some people to access traditional places where HIV testing is provided. Self-testing allows people to get tested for HIV while still following social distancing practices. Ask your local health department or HIV service organization if they offer self-testing kits.

How Soon After Exposure to HIV Can an HIV Test Detect If You Are Infected?

No HIV test can detect HIV immediately after infection. If you think you’ve been exposed to HIV, in the last 72 hours, talk to your health care provider about post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP), right away.

The time between when a person gets HIV and when a test can accurately detect it is called the window period. The window period varies from person to person and also depends upon the type of HIV test.

Types of HIV Tests and Their Window Periods

• Nucleic Acid Test (NAT)—A NAT can usually tell you if you have HIV infection 10 to 33 days after exposure
• Antigen/Antibody Test—An antigen/antibody test performed by a laboratory on blood from a vein can usually detect HIV infection 18 to 45 days after exposure. Antigen/antibody tests done with blood from a finger prick take longer to detect HIV (18 to 90 days after an exposure).
• Antibody Test—An antibody test can take 23 to 90 days to detect HIV infection after an exposure. Most rapid tests and self-tests are antibody tests. In general, antibody tests that use blood from a vein detect HIV sooner after infection than tests done with blood from a finger prick or with oral fluid.

Ask your health care provider or test counselor about the window period for the test you’re taking and whether you will need a follow-up test to confirm the results. If you’re using a self-test, you can get that information from the materials included in the test’s package.

If you get an HIV test after a potential HIV exposure and the result is negative, get tested again after the window period. Remember, you can only be sure you are HIV-negative if:

• Your most recent test is after the window period.
• You haven’t had a potential HIV exposure during the window period. If you do have an exposure, then you will need to be retested.

What If You Can’t Pay for Your HIV Test?

As required by the Affordable Care Act, HIV screening is covered by health insurance without a co-pay. If you don’t have health insurance, some testing sites may offer free tests. Use CDC’s Get Tested to search for free testing resources.

Should You Get Tested for HIV?

CDC recommends that everyone between the ages of 13 and 64 should get tested for HIV at least once as part of routine health care. People should get tested more often when they have had more than one sex partner or are having sex with someone whose sexual history they don’t know. Some sexually active gay and bisexual men may benefit from more frequent testing (e.g., every 3 to 6 months).

If your last HIV test result was negative, the test was more than one year ago, and you can answer yes to any of the following questions, then you should get an HIV test as soon as possible:

• Are you a man who has had sex with another man?
• Have you had sex—anal or vaginal—with a partner who has HIV?
• Have you had more than one sex partner since your last HIV test?
• Have you injected drugs and shared needles, syringes, or other injection drug equipment (for example, cookers) with others?
• Have you exchanged sex for drugs or money?
• Have you been diagnosed with, or treated for, another sexually transmitted infection?
• Have you been diagnosed with or treated for hepatitis or tuberculosis (TB)?
• Have you had sex with someone who could answer "yes" to any of the above questions or someone whose sexual history you don't know?

If you are over 64 years of age and at risk for HIV, your health care provider may recommend HIV testing.

Are you pregnant or trying to get pregnant? As part of proactive prenatal care, all pregnant women should receive certain blood tests to detect infections and other illnesses, such as HIV, syphilis, and Hepatitis B. Talk to a health care provider about these tests.

Also, anyone who has been sexually assaulted or has had a high-risk exposure to HIV should consider taking post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) and getting an HIV antigen test that can detect infection sooner than standard antibody testing. PEP may prevent HIV infection after possible exposure to HIV if it is started as soon as possible within 3 days after exposure to HIV.

How Can HIV Testing Help You?

About 1 in 8 people in the United States who have HIV do not know they have it.The only way to know for sure whether you have HIV is to get tested.

Knowing your HIV status gives you powerful information to help you take steps to keep you and your partner(s) healthy:

• If you test positive, you can be connected to HIV care to start treatment with HIV medicine as soon as possible. People with HIV who take HIV medicine as prescribed can live long and healthy lives. There’s also an important prevention benefit. If you take HIV medicine as prescribed and get and keep an undetectable viral load, you will not transmit HIV to an HIV-negative partner through sex.
• If you test negative, you have more prevention tools available today to prevent HIV than ever before.
• If you are pregnant, you should be tested for HIV so that you can begin treatment if you're HIV-positive. If you have HIV and take HIV medicine as prescribed throughout your pregnancy and childbirth and give HIV medicine to your baby for 4 to 6 weeks after giving birth, your risk of transmitting HIV to your baby can be less than 1%. HIV medicine will protect your own health as well.

The sooner you know your status, the better. Some people with HIV have it for years before they know it. During that time, they aren’t getting the treatment they need to protect their health and prevent transmission of HIV to their sexual or needle sharing partners. That’s why CDC encourages more frequent HIV testing for individuals who might have a risk for getting HIV.

Is HIV Self-Testing an Option?

Yes. HIV self-testing allows people to take an HIV test and find out their result in their own home or other private location. There are two kinds:

• A Rapid Self-Test is done entirely at home or in a private location and can produce results within 20 minutes. You can buy a rapid self-test kit at a pharmacy or online. The only rapid self-test currently available in the US is an oral fluid test.
• A Mail-In Self-Test includes a specimen collection kit that contains supplies to collect dried blood from a fingerstick at home. The sample is then sent to a lab for testing and the results are provided by a health care provider. Mail-in self-tests can be ordered through various online merchant sites. Your health care provider can also order a mail-in self-test for you.

Directly purchased self-tests may not be covered by private health insurance or Medicaid. Be sure to check with your insurance provider and your health care provider about whether you can be reimbursed for tests that you purchase yourself.

Note: State laws regarding self-testing vary and may limit availability. Check with your health care provider or local health department for additional testing options.

Should You Get Tested for HIV If You Don’t Think You’re at High Risk?

Some people who test positive for HIV were not aware of their risk. That's why CDC recommends that everyone between the ages of 13 and 64 get tested for HIV at least once as part of routine health care and more often if you do things that might increase your risk for getting HIV. (See above).

Even if you are in a monogamous relationship (both you and your partner are having sex only with each other), you should find out for sure whether you or your partner has HIV.

What types of tests are available, and how do they work?

There are three types of HIV tests: antibody tests, antigen/antibody tests, and nucleic acid tests (NAT). Antibodies are produced by your immune system when you’re exposed to viruses like HIV. Antigens are foreign substances that cause your immune system to activate. If you have HIV, an antigen called p24 is produced even before antibodies develop.

HIV tests are typically performed on blood or oral fluid. They may also be performed on urine.

Antibody Test

An antibody test looks for antibodies to HIV in your blood or oral fluid.

• Most rapid tests and the only HIV self-test approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are antibody tests.
• In general, antibody tests that use blood from a vein can detect HIV sooner than tests done with blood from a finger stick or with oral fluid.

Antigen/Antibody Test

An antigen/antibody test looks for both HIV antibodies and antigens.

• Antigen/antibody tests are recommended for testing done in labs and are common in the United States. This lab test involves drawing blood from a vein.
• There is also a rapid antigen/antibody test available that is done with blood from a finger stick.

Nucleic Acid Test (NAT)

A NAT looks for the actual virus in the blood.

• With a NAT, the health care provider will draw blood from your vein and send the sample to a lab for testing.
• This test can tell if a person has HIV or how much virus is present in the blood (HIV viral load test).
• A NAT can detect HIV sooner than other types of tests.
• This test should be considered for people who have had a recent exposure or a possible exposure and have early symptoms of HIV and who have tested negative with an antibody or antigen/antibody test.

Talk to your health care provider about what type of HIV test is right for you.

How long will it take to get my HIV test results?

It depends on the type of HIV test and where you get tested.

• HIV self-tests provide results within 20 minutes.
• With a rapid antibody test, usually done with blood from a finger stick or with oral fluid, results are ready in 30 minutes or less.
• The rapid antigen/antibody test, done with blood from a finger stick, takes 30 minutes or less.
• It may take several days to receive your test results with a NAT or antigen/antibodylab test.

Can an HIV test detect the virus immediately after exposure?

No HIV test can detect HIV immediately after infection. That’s because of the window period—the time between HIV exposure and when a test can detect HIV in your body. The window period depends on the type of HIV test. A nucleic acid test can usually detect HIV the soonest (about 10 to 33 days after exposure). Learn more about the window period for each HIV test.

If you think you’ve been exposed to HIV in the last 72 hours, talk to a health care provider, an emergency room doctor, or an urgent care provider about post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) right away.

What is the HIV window period?

The window period for an HIV test refers to the time between HIV exposure and when a test can detect HIV in your body. The window period depends on the type of HIV test used.

What is the window period for the HIV test I took?

• Antibody tests can usually detect HIV 23 to 90 days after exposure. Most rapid tests and self-tests are antibody tests.
• A rapid antigen/antibody test done with blood from a finger stick can usually detect HIV 18 to 90 days after exposure.
• An antigen/antibody lab test using blood from a vein can usually detect HIV 18 to 45 days after exposure.
• A nucleic acid test (NAT) can usually detect HIV 10 to 33 days after exposure.

If you get an HIV test after a potential HIV exposure and the result is negative, get tested again after the window period for the test you took. Learn more about what a negative test result means.

How do I find an HIV test?

Most HIV tests are available for free or at a reduced cost.

Ask your health care provider for an HIV test. Many medical clinics, substance abuse programs, community health centers, and hospitals offer them too.

You can find a testing site near you by

• using CDC’s HIV prevention services locator,
• visiting gettested.cdc.gov, or
• calling 1-800-CDC-INFO (232-4636).

You can also buy an HIV self-test at a pharmacy or online or visit gettested.cdc.gov to see if any organizations in your area are offering free or reduced cost self-tests.

What is an HIV self-test?

AnHIV self-test (or rapid self-test) is an antibody test that can be used at home or in a private location. With an HIV self-test, you can get your test results within 20 minutes.

How do I find an HIV self-test?

You can buy an HIV self-test at a pharmacy or online. Your local health department or another organization near you may offer free or reduced cost self-tests, which you can find using the locator below. The only FDA-approved HIV self-test currently available in the United States is an oral fluid test.

Note: State laws regarding self-testing vary and may limit availability. Check with a health care provider or local health department for additional HIV testing options.

How do I use an HIV self-test?

Read the instructions included in the test kit before you start.

• For an HIV self-test, you must swab your gums to collect an oral fluid sample and then test your sample.

• Your results will be ready within 20 minutes.
• If you don’t follow the directions as described, the test may not work. There is a phone number included with the HIV self-test if you need help using the test.

You should always interpret HIV self-test results according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Learn more about what a negative or positive test result means.

If the HIV self-test is invalid, then the test did not work. You will need to use another HIV self-test, use a mail-in HIV test, or find testing at a health care provider or testing center.

What is a mail-in HIV test?

Amail-in HIV test is an antigen/antibody test that includes supplies to collect a small sample of blood from a finger stick. You or your health care provider can order the test online and send the sample to a lab for testing. If your provider orders the test, they will contact you with the test results.

Mail-in HIV tests are not approved by the U. S. Food and Drug Administration. However, under the Clinical Laboratory and Improvement Amendments of 1988, labs that offer this service are required to establish and verify the test’s accuracy.

How do I find a mail-in HIV test?

You can order a mail-in HIV test online. Your health care provider can also order a mail-in HIV test for you.

How do I use a mail-in HIV test?

Read the instructions included in the test kit before you start.

• For a mail-in HIV test, you must prick your finger and collect a very small sample of blood.

• You or your health care provider will mail the sample to a lab for testing.
• If your health care provider orders the test, they will contact you when your test results are ready.

You should always follow the manufacturer’s instructions to make sure you collect a good sample.

Will my insurance cover an HIV self-test or mail-in test?

HIV self-tests and mail-in HIV tests may be covered by insurance. Be sure to check with your insurance company and health care provider about reimbursement for tests that you purchase.

What Do Your HIV Test Results Mean?

If you’ve just had an HIV test, you may be wondering what a positive or negative test result means. If you were tested in a health care provider’s office, a clinic, or a community setting, the provider or testing counselor will explain what your result means and talk to you about the next steps. If you used a rapid HIV self-test at home or another private location, the package materials will provide this information, along with a phone number you can call.

Below are answers to some of the most common questions.

What If Your HIV Test Result Is Negative?

If your HIV test result is negative, it doesn't necessarily mean you don't have HIV. That's because of the window period—the time between when a person gets HIV and when a test can accurately detect it. The window period varies from person to person and depends on the type of HIV test you take.

Ask your health care provider or testing counselor about the window period for the type of HIV test you’re taking. If you’re using a self-test, you can find that information in the test package.

If your test result is negative, get tested again after the window period to be sure. If your test result is negative again, and you have had no possible HIV exposure during the window period, then you do not have HIV.

What’s next? Now is a good time to think about your HIV prevention options. If you’re sexually active or use needles to inject drugs, continue to take actions to prevent HIV, like taking pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP (medicines to prevent HIV) if you’re at high risk or using condoms the right way every time you have sex.

If you have certain risk factors for HIV, you should continue to get tested at least once a year. Learn more about who is at risk for HIV and why they should be tested more often.

If You Have a Negative Test Result, Does that Mean that Your Partner Is HIV-Negative Also?

No. Your HIV test result reveals only your HIV status.

HIV is not necessarily transmitted every time you have sex or share needles, syringes, or other drug injection equipment. And the risk of getting HIV varies depending on the type of exposure or behavior. Therefore, taking an HIV test is not a way to find out if your partner has HIV.

It's important to be open with your partner(s) and ask them to tell you their HIV status. But keep in mind that your partner(s) may not know or may be wrong about their status, and some may not tell you if they have HIV even if they are aware of their status. Consider getting tested together so you can both know your HIV status and take steps to keep yourselves healthy.

What If Your Test Result Is Positive?

Most HIV tests are antibody tests. If you use any type of antibody test and have a positive test result, you will need a follow-up test to confirm the results.

• If you had a rapid screening test at a community testing program or other location, the testing site will arrange a follow-up test to make sure your initial test result was correct.
• If you used a self-testing kit at home, you should go to a health care provider for a follow-up test. A positive HIV test result must always be confirmed by additional HIV testing performed in a health care setting.
• If you had a blood test in a health care setting or a lab, the lab will conduct a follow-up test on the same blood sample as the first test.

If your follow-up test is also positive, it means you have HIV.

After you are diagnosed with HIV, your health care provider's office or clinic will provide post-test counselling to help you understand the next steps, including the importance of starting HIV treatment as soon as possible. HIV treatment involves taking highly effective medicines (called antiretroviral therapy or ART) that work to control the virus. ART is recommended for all people with HIV, regardless of how long they’ve had the virus or how healthy they are.

If taken as prescribed, HIV medicine can reduce the amount of HIV in your blood (also called your viral load) to a very low level. This is called viral suppression. If your viral load is so low that a standard lab can’t detect it, this is called having an undetectable viral load. People with HIV who take HIV medicine as prescribed and get and keep an undetectable viral load can live long and healthy lives and will not transmit HIV to their HIV-negative partners through sex.

If you have health insurance, your insurer is required to cover some medicines used to treat HIV. If you don’t have health insurance or you need help because your insurance doesn’t pay for the treatment you need, there are state, federal, and private resources that may help you.

To lower your risk of transmitting HIV:

• Take HIV medicine as prescribed so that you get and keep an undetectable viral load.
• If you do not have an undetectable viral load, use condoms the right way every time you have sex.
• If your partner is HIV-negative, encourage them to talk to their health care provider to see if pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is right for them. PrEP is medicine people at risk for HIV take to prevent getting HIV from sex or injection drug use.
• If you think your partner might have been recently exposed to HIV—for example, if a condom breaks during sex and you do not have an undetectable viral load—they should talk to a health care provider right away (no later than 72 hours) about taking post-exposure prophylaxis, or PEP, which is a short course of HIV medicines taken very soon after a possible exposure to HIV to prevent the virus from taking hold in the body.
• Get tested and treated for STDs and encourage your partner to do the same.

Receiving a diagnosis of HIV can be a life-changing event. People can feel many emotions—sadness, hopelessness, and even anger. Allied health care providers and social service providers can help you work through the early stages of your diagnosis and begin to manage your HIV.

Talking to others who have HIV may also be helpful. Find a local HIV support group. Learn about how other people living with HIV have handled their diagnosis.

You can view stories and testimonials of how people are staying adherent to their HIV treatment and living well with HIV by visiting HIV.gov’s Positive Spin.

Will Other People Know Your Test Result?

If you take an anonymous test, no one but you will know the result. If you take a confidential test, your test result will be part of your medical record, but it will still be protected by state and federal privacy laws. Most HIV testing is done confidentially.

• Anonymous testing means that nothing ties your test results to you. When you take an anonymous HIV test, you get a unique identifier that allows you to get your test results. Anonymous tests are not available at every place that provides HIV testing. You can purchase a self-test if you want to test anonymously.
• Confidential testing means that your name and other identifying information will be attached to your test results. The results will go in your medical record and may be shared with your health care providers and your health insurance company. Otherwise, the results are protected by state and federal privacy laws, and they can be released only with your permission.

With confidential testing, if you test positive for HIV, the test result and your name will be reported to the state or local health department to help public health officials get better estimates of the rates of HIV in the state. The state health department will then remove all personal information about you (name, address, etc.) and share the remaining non-identifying information with CDC. CDC does not share this information with anyone else, including insurance companies.

As a follow up to a positive HIV test, your local health department may contact you to make sure that you received your test result and understood it, to find out whether you were referred to HIV medical care and social services, and to see whether you have received HIV medical care and treatment.

The health department representative may talk with you about the need to tell your current and former sexual or needle-sharing partner(s) about their possible exposure to HIV. Doing so allows your partners to make decisions that can protect their health. In some states, there are laws that require you to share your HIV status with your sex or injection partners.

The health department representative may offer partner services to assist you with these conversations. Through partner services, health department staff will try attempt to locate any or all of your partners to let them know they may have been exposed to HIV. They will help them find a place to get tested, give them information about PrEP, PEP, and other HIV prevention methods, and help them access counselling or other services. For partners who test positive, health department staff will provide linkage to HIV treatment and care.

If you are HIV-positive, it is also important to disclose your HIV status to your health care providers (doctors, dentists, etc.) so that they can give you the best possible care. Sharing your status with anyone else is your choice. Learn more about telling others.

What does a negative HIV test result mean?

A negative result doesn’t necessarily mean that you don’t have HIV. That’s because of the window period — the time between HIV exposure and when a test can detect HIV in your body.

• If you get an HIV test after a potential HIV exposure and the result is negative, get tested again after the window period for the test you took.
• If you test again after the window period, have no possible HIV exposure during that time, and the result is negative, you do not have HIV.

If you’re sexually active or use needles to inject drugs, continue to take actions to prevent HIV, like taking medicines to prevent HIV.

If you have certain risk factors, you should continue getting tested at least once a year.

If I have a negative result, does that mean my partner is HIV-negative also?

No. Your HIV test result reveals only your HIV status.

HIV is not necessarily transmitted every time you have sex or share needles, syringes, or other drug injection equipment (for example, cookers). And the chance of getting HIV varies depending on the type of exposure or behavior. Taking an HIV test is not a way to find out if your partner has HIV.

Be open with your partners and ask them to tell you their HIV status. But keep in mind that your partners may not know, may be wrong, or may not tell you about their status. Consider getting tested together so you can both know your HIV status and take steps to keep yourselves healthy.

What does a positive HIV result mean?

If you use any type of antibody test and have a positive result, you will need a follow-up test to confirm your results.

• If you test in a community program or take an HIV self-test and it’s positive, you should go to a health care provider for follow-up testing.
• If you test in a health care setting or a lab and it’s positive, the lab will conduct the follow-up testing, usually on the same blood sample as the first test.

If the follow-up test is also positive, it means you have HIV.

What should I do if I just got diagnosed with HIV?

Receiving an HIV diagnosis can be life changing. You may feel many emotions—sadness, hopelessness, or anger. Allied health care providers and social service providers can help you work through the early stages of your diagnosis. They can also help you find HIV care and treatment that will help you live a long, healthy life.

• HIV treatment (antiretroviral therapy or ART) is recommended for all people with HIV, regardless of how long they’ve had the virus or how healthy they are.
• HIV treatment can make the amount of HIV in the blood (viral load) so low that a test can’t detect it (undetectable viral load). Getting and keeping an undetectable viral load is the best way to stay healthy and protect others.

If I test positive for HIV, does that mean I have AIDS?

No. Testing positive for HIV does not mean you have AIDS.

• AIDS is the most advanced stage of HIV disease (Stage 3).
• HIV can lead to AIDS if a person with HIV does not get treatment or take care of their health. But if someone with HIV takes their HIV treatment as prescribed, they can live long, healthy lives, and may never develop AIDS.

Learn more about AIDS.

Will other people know my HIV test result?

HIV tests may be anonymous or confidential.

Anonymous testing means only you will know the test result.

• When you take an anonymous HIV test, you get a unique identifier that allows you to get your test results.
• You can also buy an HIV self-test if you want to test anonymously.

Confidential testing means your test result will be part of your medical record.

• Your name and other personal information will be attached to your test results.
• The results will go in your medical record and may be shared with your health care provider and health insurance company.
• Otherwise, your results are protected by state and federal privacy laws, and they can only be released with your permission.

With confidential testing, if your test result is positive, the result and your name will be reported to the state or local health department to help public health officials estimate HIV rates in the state. The state health department will then remove all personal information about you (name, address, etc.) and share the remaining information with CDC. CDC does not share this information with anyone.

Should I share my positive HIV test result with others?

You should share your HIV status with your sex or needle-sharing partners. Whether you disclose your status to others is your decision.

Partners

You should disclose your HIV status to your sex or needle-sharing partners even if you’re uncomfortable talking about it. Communicating your HIV status allows each person to take steps to stay healthy. The more practice you have disclosing your HIV status, the easier it will become.

Family and Friends

In most cases, your family and friends will only know your test results or HIV status if you tell them. While telling your family that you have HIV may seem hard, disclosure has many benefits. Telling friends and family can provide an important source of support in managing your HIV. Studies show that people who disclose their HIV status respond better to treatment than those who don’t.

Employers

In most cases, your employer will only know your HIV status if you tell them. But your employer has the right to ask if you have any health conditions that may affect your ability to do your job or that pose a serious risk to others. (For example, you may have to disclose your health conditions if you’re a health care provider who does procedures where there is a risk of blood or other body fluids being exchanged.)

If you have health insurance through your employer, the insurance company cannot legally tell your employer that you have HIV. But your employer could find out if the insurance company provides detailed information to your employer about the benefits it pays or the cost of insurance.

All people with HIV are covered under the Americans with Disabilities Act. This means that your employer cannot discriminate against you because of your HIV status if you can do your job.