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PaperclipPerfector  8mo ago (text post)   2757 thread views

Small-Scale Question Sunday for May 4, 2025

Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?

This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.

Culture war topics are accepted, and proposals for a better intro post are appreciated.

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Is it just, like, straight-up illegal to get anonymous STD testing in Alabama?

https://law.justia.com/codes/alabama/title-22/title-1/chapter-11a/article-1/section-22-11a-14/

Any physician who diagnoses … a case of sexually transmitted disease as designated by the State Board of Health, … shall report … to the state or county health officer … the patient’s full name, date of birth, … address, telephone number, … stage of disease, … and the date of onset.

Or is there some workaround where a physician or clinic can “give you the tools for diagnosis” without being the one to diagnose you?

Hmm, the situation in 1998 was thus:

https://www.reliasmedia.com/articles/60366-cdc-recommends-all-states-make-anonymous-hiv-testing-available

Anonymous testing is currently available in all but 11 states.

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/188098

Currently, 40 states have publicly funded anonymous testing sites for HIV, …

… anonymous testing contributes at a population level to early HIV testing and medical care. Thus, … public health departments should maintain and in some instances enhance the broad availability of anonymous testing options.

but I can't find any such up-to-date surveys.

I'm annoyed just how much focus there is on "accessibility"; the impression I get from the articles I had to slog through even to find these was that if it isn't taxpayer-subsidized with a $0 copay it may as well not exist...

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