Legislator Pushes for Mandatory HIV Testing

HOUSTON — A Texas legislator is continuing his push to make HIV testing mandatory for all incoming inmates in state prisons.

Sen. Rodney Ellis, D-Houston, drafted legislation last year that would require the testing, and he recently sought an opinion on the subject from Texas Attorney General Greg Abbot.

The policy in place now encourages inmates to get tested for HIV during the intake process, but it is not mandatory. About 80 percent of incoming inmates take the tests, according to a prison spokeswoman. Offenders are required to be tested for HIV upon their release.

About 17 percent of prisoners in the state prison system are HIV-positive, and about 9 percent of inmates tested positive for HIV upon entering prison in 2005, according to reports.

In an effort to curb the infection rate, some advocacy groups are pushing to distribute condoms to inmates because HIV-infected prisoners are not separated from inmates that are not infected. Distributing condoms to inmates is estimated to cost Texas less than $300,000 a year, according to the Texas AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power.

However, a zero-tolerance policy on sexual activity in Texas prisons prohibits state prisons from distributing condoms to inmates. Prison officials say they focus on educational programs to help promote awareness.

“We have a zero-tolerance policy, so our programs support our stance,” says Michelle Lyons, spokeswoman for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.

Peer education groups provide information on sexual assault, abuse prevention and HIV, according to Lyons.