Repealing Mandatory HIV Testing Requirement (S 269)

Currently in Rhode Island, someone who is convicted of a consensual sex crime is subjected to a mandatory HIV test. This requirement is largely aimed at sex workers. Because this required testing possesses a great amount of stigma both on those individuals who are tested and on the disease itself, we supported legislation to repeal this requirement. Repeal of this particular mandate will still maintain in place the availability of voluntary testing and access to appropriate health services. But, in modernizing the state's HIV testing statutes, this bill will also promote greater fairness in the way that both HIV and sex workers are treated in the criminal justice system.