Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1985. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
Miami Herald - Thursday, May 30 1985
Paul Saltzman, Herald Staff Writer
The $20 test for exposure to the HTLV-III virus, believed to cause AIDS, will be offered through 16 county health departments around Florida, including those in Broward, Dade and Palm Beach counties.
Only Broward, though, among the South Florida counties is prepared to start offering the test Monday. Dade and Palm Beach health officials are working to offer the test by July 1, officials said.
The test is not a certain indication for AIDS.
But state health officials rushed to offer it anyway to keep potential AIDS victims from going to blood banks to donate blood to get the HTLV-III test. Blood banks were the first to offer the test, starting in March.
The blood of the estimated 1 percent of AIDS victims not detected by the tests could have spread the disease.
AIDS is a fatal illness that strips the body of its ability to fight disease.
Appointments will be required for testing, results may take a week and those unable to pay still can get the test, health officials said. Broward residents should call the county health department at 765-1117.
Precautions are being taken to protect the identities of those tested. Only an identifying number will be used, no names.
"If they can be assured of the confidentiality of the testing, fine," said Karl Clark, president of the Dolphin Democratic Club of Broward County, an organization of about 150 gay men and women that originally opposed the testing.
Still, Clark said, "We're not encouraging anybody in the community to undergo the test because of the false readings."
Dr. Charles Konigsberg Jr., the Broward County health director, said his agency will concentrate on counseling those seeking the test to change their life styles to reduce their risk -- to change their sexual practices, for example.
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