BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - Louisiana’s Department of Health says laboratories must now report all test results for HIV, syphilis and hepatitis C - even tests indicating someone doesn’t have the ailment.
Louisiana has very high rates of all three diseases, which can be fatal.
Office of Public Health Assistant Secretary Alex Billioux (Bee-yoo) says getting all test results will give a clearer picture of epidemics and efforts to stop them.
The department says a negative test might not rule out an infection or might provide important information about treatment success.
It said in a news release Friday that the new rule follows recommendations from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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This story has been corrected to show reporting requirement is for laboratories, not doctors.
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