HIV screening info

[Big Sexy]

noone said it is mandatory under the law...however the Infectious Diseases Act would suggest so and tell me how one is going to remain anonymous when one is required to inform their sex partner about their HIV positive status before any sexual activities ?

the testing itself is indeed Anonymous..
but we are talking about post testing.. not pre-testing or the testing procedure itself

https://sso.agc.gov.sg/Act/IDA1976

Person with AIDS or HIV Infection to undergo counselling, etc.

22.—(1) The Director may require any person who has been diagnosed as having AIDS or HIV Infection —

(a) to undergo counselling at such time and at such hospital or other place as the Director may determine; and
[10/2008 wef 10/06/2008]

(b) to comply with such precautions and safety measures as may be specified by the Director.
[5/92; 13/99]

(2) Any person who fails or refuses to comply with subsection (1) shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $10,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 2 years or to both.

Sexual activity by person with AIDS or HIV Infection

23.—(1) A person who knows that he has AIDS or HIV Infection shall not engage in any sexual activity with another person unless, before the sexual activity takes place —
(a) he has informed that other person of the risk of contracting AIDS or HIV Infection from him; and
(b) that other person has voluntarily agreed to accept that risk.
(2) A person who does not know that he has AIDS or HIV Infection, but who has reason to believe that he has, or has been exposed to a significant risk of contracting, AIDS or HIV Infection shall not engage in any sexual activity with another person unless —
(a) before the sexual activity takes place he informs that other person of the risk of contracting AIDS or HIV Infection from him and that other person voluntarily agrees to accept that risk;
(b) he has undergone the necessary serological or other test and has ascertained that he does not have AIDS or HIV Infection at the time of the sexual activity; or
(c) during the sexual activity, he takes reasonable precautions to ensure that he does not expose that other person to the risk of contracting AIDS or HIV Infection.
(3) Any person who contravenes subsection (1) or (2) shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $50,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 10 years or to both.
(4) For the purposes of this section, a person shall not, only by reason of age, be presumed incapable of engaging in sexual activity.
(5) For the purposes of this section, a person shall be deemed to know that he has AIDS or HIV Infection if a serological test or other test for the purpose of ascertaining the presence of HIV Infection carried out on him has given a positive result and the result has been communicated to him.
(6) No prosecution shall be instituted for an offence under subsection (2) except with the written consent of the Public Prosecutor, but a person charged with such an offence may be arrested and be remanded in custody or released on bail notwithstanding that the consent of the Public Prosecutor to the institution of a prosecution for the offence has not been obtained, except that the case shall not be further prosecuted until that consent of the Public Prosecutor has been obtained.
[15/2010 wef 02/01/2011]
(7) In this section, “sexual activity” means —
(a) sexual activity occasioned by the introduction into the vagina, anus or mouth of any person of any part of the penis of another person; or
(b) cunnilingus.

Originally Posted by Roch01

Where did it say counselling is mandatory under the law?

[Big Sexy]

to addon to my earlier post..
here is an extract from Dr tan and partner website.

http://www.drtanandpartners.com/hiv-...d-immigration/

HIV Laws in Singapore – Disclosure and Immigration
POSTED BY DR. TAN KOK KUAN ON NOV 25, 2013 IN HIV, PEOPLE LIVING WITH HIV | 250 COMMENTS


Many people are still concerned about the laws in Singapore with regards to HIV.
Click here for info on How to visit Singapore if you are HIV +ve.

Laws pertaining to HIV are governed under The Infectious Diseases Act (IDA) which has been amended multiple times since HIV was discovered.

The spirit of this law is really 2 pronged:

To protect public health
To protect the identify of people living with HIV
Yes, Number 2 is hard to believe especially in Singapore but it is true.

Let us look at this is more detail.

1. To protect public health

Law: The IDA requires a person living with HIV to undergo counselling and comply with specified precautions and safety measures.

Comment: Honestly, this is really fair enough don’t you think? There are so many misconceptions and so much misunderstanding about HIV out there that people who are diagnosed with it really should understand the facts and myths.

Law: The IDA makes it an offence for a person living with HIV to have sexual intercourse without informing and obtaining consent from the partner.

Comment: Everyone has to agree that this is fair.

Law: The IDA requires that a person who has reason to believe that he/she has, or has been exposed to a significant risk of contracting HIV to take reasonable precautions to protect their sexual partner even is he/she is ignorant of their HIV positive status.

Comment: In other words, if a person engages a sex worker and unknowingly passes HIV to his/her partner, the law deems this an offence. Because the person should logically know that engaging a sex worker puts him/her at risk of HIV. In short, ignorance is not an excuse.

[alamakupal]

Hi,

The girls under FL Dome L - Fine Dining with a Local Flavor does not do the health screening too isn't it?

[Big Sexy]

i doubt so..but do we then discriminate them?

how many guys who patronized the girls in FL Dome L do health screening before patronizing the gals in FL Dome L? if anything the risk for the gals are higher imo..

bottom line ..cheong with care and cheong at your own risk..

Originally Posted by alamakupal

Hi,

The girls under FL Dome L - Fine Dining with a Local Flavor does not do the health screening too isn't it?

[Roch01]

Of cos its an offence not to disclose your status regardless of whether the test is anonymous or not.
Anonymous testing centres are exempted from the IDA. Anonymous means anonymous. There is a purpose for anonymous testing, otherwise it defeats the purpose of makimg people come forward for testing.

[Big Sexy]

Anonymous testing centres are exempted from the IDA?
is that a fact or you are assuming again?

can u provide proof that they are exempted?

Dr Tan and partners are not exempted from the Infectious Disease Act... so is AFA....
that is why they publish the info on their website.

http://afa.org.sg/law-and-hiv-in-singapore/

The legal framework governing HIV in Singapore is set out in the Infectious Disease Act, which relates to the quarantine and prevention of infectious diseases, originally enacted in 1976 and amended in January 2016. It encompasses five areas of concern regarding people living with HIV in Singapore: counseling requirements, sexual activity, blood donation, protection of identity, and disclosure of status.

The Director of Medical Services may require a person diagnosed with HIV to undergo counseling at a government-recommended healthcare institution, whereby the patient is expected to comply with precautions and safety measures specified during the learning session.

Sexual intercourse (defined as vaginal, anal, oral penile penetration, and the act of cunnilingus on females) is prohibited if a person is aware of his or her HIV-positive status, unless the sexual partner is informed of the risk of contracting HIV prior to the encounter, and has voluntarily agreed to accept this risk. If a person is not aware of his or her HIV status, but has reason to believe that there has been significant exposure risk, the same rule of disclosure applies, otherwise he or she would need an HIV-negative test prior to the sexual act, or should take reasonable precautions to reduce risk of transmission. One of these three requirements must be fulfilled.

People living with HIV are not allowed to donate blood at any blood bank in Singapore, nor participate in any activity that is likely to transmit or spread AIDS or HIV infection to another person.

The duty of confidentiality is limited to persons in performance or exercise of his/her functions or duties under this Act i.e., medical practitioners, health care workers, government authorities in the enforcing control of infectious diseases in Singapore. Disclosure of another person’s HIV-reactive status while performing such functions is considered an offense, except in the following cases:

when the person with HIV has consented to disclosure of his or her status
when the person is providing information to a police officer concerning commission of or the intention of any other person to commit offence punishable under the Penal Code
when ordered to do so by a court
when providing information to the healthcare worker in charge of treatment or counseling
when a blood, organ, semen, or breast milk bank has received donations from the person with HIV
for anonymous statistical and epidemiologic reports
to the sexual assault victims
to the Controller of Immigration for the purposes of the Immigration Act
to the next-of-kin, upon death of person with HIV
to person/s deemed applicable by the Director of Health Services, in the interest of public health
upon authorization by the Minister of Health for the purposes of public health or public safety
The Director of Health Services has the authority to disclose any information related to a person whom he reasonably believes to be infected with HIV to a healthcare worker or a first responder who has a risk of exposure. In relation to this, a medical practitioner may disclose information about the person to the spouse, former spouse, or other sexual contacts. This disclosure should be done if medically appropriate, upon determination of a significant transmission risk, and after counseling the person with HIV regarding the need to disclose and the intent to notify potentially exposed people if he himself would not do so. If the healthcare professional is unable to inform the person living with HIV regarding the need to disclose to contacts, the Director may waive such requirements if he deems it medically appropriate and that there exists a significant risk of transmission.

The respective fines and prison terms for respective offences under the Infectious Disease Act are stated below. (Table 1)

Table 1. Penalties for Offences under the Infectious Disease Act
FINE NOT EXCEEDING ($) AND/OR PRISON TERM NOT EXCEEDING
Counseling, precautions, safety measures 10,000 2 years
Sexual activity 50,000 10 years
Blood donation 50,000 10 years
Protection of identity 10,000 3 months
Disclosure to contacts 10,000 3 months

Originally Posted by Roch01

Of cos its an offence not to disclose your status regardless of whether the test is anonymous or not.
Anonymous testing centres are exempted from the IDA. Anonymous means anonymous. There is a purpose for anonymous testing, otherwise it defeats the purpose of makimg people come forward for testing.

[Roch01]

I read from drtans’

Disclosure laws and Anonymous Testing Centres
Law: The IDA requires every medical practitioner who has reason to believe or suspect that any person attended or treated by him is suffering from an infectious disease or is a carrier of that disease shall notify the Director within the prescribed time and in such form or manner as the Director may require.
Comment: All doctors and lab staff are required to inform the Ministry of a person’s HIV positive status within 72 hours of diagnosis. This is why Anonymous Testing Clinics like ours are so special. There is a filed gazette in the Supreme Court of Singapore that excuses us from this clause of the IDA. So when we say that our testing is anonymous, we really mean that it is anonymous. It is legally air-tight.

[Big Sexy]

if so you are probably correct then..

btw do u have any knowledge on AFA? are they also exempted from the Infectious Disease Act?

Originally Posted by Roch01

I read from drtans’

Disclosure laws and Anonymous Testing Centres
Law: The IDA requires every medical practitioner who has reason to believe or suspect that any person attended or treated by him is suffering from an infectious disease or is a carrier of that disease shall notify the Director within the prescribed time and in such form or manner as the Director may require.
Comment: All doctors and lab staff are required to inform the Ministry of a person’s HIV positive status within 72 hours of diagnosis. This is why Anonymous Testing Clinics like ours are so special. There is a filed gazette in the Supreme Court of Singapore that excuses us from this clause of the IDA. So when we say that our testing is anonymous, we really mean that it is anonymous. It is legally air-tight.

[DoctorTan]

Hi all,

Dr Tan and Partner's Robertson branch is allowed by MOH to conduct anonymous HIV testing. This means you do not need to provide your name, address, identity number/ passport number to do the test. All results from the anonymous HIV testing remains anonymous as such there is no ientifiable data linked to your test result.

[Big Sexy]

thanks for the clarification Dr tan and welcome back , we need you here more often

do u happened to have any idea if AFA is also exempted from the Infectious Disease Act?
in particular, will those tested HIV positive be forced to go for the counseling session etc.
pls advise. thanks

Originally Posted by DoctorTan

Hi all,

Dr Tan and Partner's Robertson branch is allowed by MOH to conduct anonymous HIV testing. This means you do not need to provide your name, address, identity number/ passport number to do the test. All results from the anonymous HIV testing remains anonymous as such there is no ientifiable data linked to your test result.

[Frankiestine]

Originally Posted by DoctorTan

Hi all,

Dr Tan and Partner's Robertson branch is allowed by MOH to conduct anonymous HIV testing. This means you do not need to provide your name, address, identity number/ passport number to do the test. All results from the anonymous HIV testing remains anonymous as such there is no ientifiable data linked to your test result.

Hi Dr. Tan so in other words even the result (from anonymous testing) itself are not submitted to MOH for collation of stats? So there is a possibility that the figs for HIV infection could be higher then what MOH has been reporting....

[Roch01]

Originally Posted by Big Sexy

if so you are probably correct then..

btw do u have any knowledge on AFA? are they also exempted from the Infectious Disease Act?

As long as it is an approved anonymous site, it should be

[Roch01]

Originally Posted by Frankiestine

Hi Dr. Tan so in other words even the result (from anonymous testing) itself are not submitted to MOH for collation of stats? So there is a possibility that the figs for HIV infection could be higher then what MOH has been reporting....

I speak from a layman’s view. Of cos the stats will be collated but not the identifiable individual

[Roch01]

Originally Posted by Big Sexy

thanks for the clarification Dr tan and welcome back , we need you here more often

do u happened to have any idea if AFA is also exempted from the Infectious Disease Act?
in particular, will those tested HIV positive be forced to go for the counseling session etc.
pls advise. thanks

Hehe, drtan angry u say his anonymous site is not anonymous so he suddenly appears hehe

[Big Sexy]

huh? when did i say Dr tans and partner isnt fully anonymous?

all i did was question on how is one going to remain anonymous when one is required to go for counseling and also inform their sex partner about their HIV positive status before any sexual activities when the law says one need to do so..

it is one thing that one ID need not be revealed or go for counseling when tested HIV positive but a totally different thing when one know one is HIV positive but doesn't reveal it to their sex partner before any sexual activities.. it will be legally wrong to do that..
so if one is required to revealed it.. how is that still anonymous?

and i was actually replying to a question on afa.org.sg not on dr tan and partners.. even though i did use dr tan and partner as a reference..

Originally Posted by 11:50pm

If you go for anonymous HIV test with afa.org.sg, what will happen if the result is positive?

Will they report you to Government, either openly or in a sneaky way?

Originally Posted by Roch01

Hehe, drtan angry u say his anonymous site is not anonymous so he suddenly appears hehe