PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
(17 April 2025)

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to extend opt out (a) HIV, (b) Hepatitis B and (c) Hepatitis C testing to all patients requiring a blood test in all NHS accident and emergency departments that do not currently offer it.

Asked by:
Dr Caroline Johnson (Conservative)

Emergency department opt out testing is currently being offered to all extremely high and high HIV prevalence areas in England until 2026/27. A detailed list of specific sites offering opt-out HIV, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C testing is in the attached table. Emergency departments not listed in the attached table are not currently offering opt-out testing.

The Department, the UK Health and Security Agency (UKHSA), and NHS England are working together in the development of a new HIV Action Plan which we aim to publish this year. The plan will include a focus on scaling up HIV testing, including an assessment of the future of opt out testing, based on the programme’s progress and the available data, in line with our 2030 ambition.

Answered by:
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