Mandatory HIV Testing: Wasteful or Worthwhile?
             Human Immunodeficiency Virus, more commonly known as HIV is a disease that leaves a
             person receptive to life-threatening infections. It attacks the immune system. There are two types
             of HIV: HIV-1 and HIV-2. HIV-1 is the basic cause of AIDS worldwide, while HIV-2 is found in West
             Africa. HIV infection occurs when a person comes in contact with an infected persons bodily fluids,
             including semen, blood, vaginal secretions, and breast milk. The main ways a person could
             become infected with HIV is sexual relations with an infected person, pricking of a hypodermic
             needle that an infected person has used, or a mother transferring it to her child through birth or
             breast-feeding ("Human"). HIV testing should not be mandatory because of how few people are
             infected, an infected person's rights, and discrimination.
             There are very few people infected with HIV in the world. In 2000, only 36,100,000 people
             were infected worldwide while the number of people worldwide is in the billions. Only 920 thousand
             people in North America are infected with HIV (Agence France-Presse). The mast majority of
             people who ask for HIV testing to be done are usually at the lowest risk for HIV. They ask for the
             tests because of fear and guilt. Many people believe that if they pay for test themselves, it does
             not increase HealthCare costs. Even if you do pay for the tests yourself, it ultimately does increase
             HealthCare costs. This is because tests are done unnecessarily, it costs more for the lab to extra
             money to hire and train staff to do those tests and purchase additional equipment. Insurance
             companies will not usually pay for these tests when they are unessential. Testing should only be
             done when there is a clinical need for the tests. Many times people are tested when they have
             been around a person who is known to be infected or if they are having symptoms that ...