Unfortunately for students, on-campus HIV testing is neither cheap nor anonymous. Currently, the Student Primary Care Clinic does offer testing, but a recently proposed plan would have made it both free and anonymous for students. However, once again the University proved itself incapable of meeting student needs by denying funding for the plan yesterday.
The Student Primary Care Clinic is the only facility on campus that offers HIV testing for students. While convenient, this option is costly. According to the clinic, returning students are charged a minimum office visit fee of $55 in addition to an $80 test fee and $21 fee for drawing blood: a total of at least $156. First-time visitors to the clinic are charged a minimum fee of $95, raising the total cost of the testing to at least $196.
This cost is too high for students to bear. Although students may choose to pay through their insurance, doing so comprises the confidentiality of the test since many students’ parents handle their insurance and would see the bill. Taking an HIV test should not necessitate that students reveal that information to their parents. If students want an affordable and anonymous test, they must look elsewhere in the District, to sites such as Planned Parenthood and Washington Free Clinic, which offer confidential testing for free or for under $10.
Students should not have to look off-campus for affordable HIV testing. The University needs to offer this basic service to students, even if it involves charging all students a minimal health fee, as do Boston College, Duke University, Indiana University and others.
The reason for withholding funds from the proposed program is also not clear. Director of Student Primary Care Clinic Dr. James Welsh said that the logistics of the program would entail the hiring of a half-time nurse and increased operating costs. Welsh said that around 350 to 400 students are tested annually at the clinic, and estimated the number could triple, showing that the service would be an extraordinary benefit for students.
Vice President for Student Affairs Juan Gonzalez said that paying the salary of another staff member is beyond the University’s capacity. Still, his argument does not seem to apply to other areas of the University, such as Student Affairs. In this department, Gonzalez recently created two new half-time positions. Special Assistant to the Vice President Mary Dluhy, who was hired to mediate conflict between campus groups, began work in January. The other position, Coordinator of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Resources, remains unfilled.
Welsh and Gonzalez both said they were satisfied with the testing that is available on-campus. Welsh emphasized that Health Education Services usually sponsors free testing approximately once a semester. Still, he was uncertain of the likelihood of free testing at the clinic in the future, though Gonzalez said the program could be presented again. For now, the high fees and insurance disclosure policy of the tests discourages students from being tested. If Welsh’s estimate is correct and there are more than 800 students who would like to get tested but are choosing not to, then the University should find the funds.
