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1 1 (May 31, 2019)

handle is hein.crs/govzxm0001 and id is 1 raw text is: $ Congressional Research Service lInformir the legislative debate sir ce 1914 May 31, 2019 HIV/AIDS in the Military Chapters 31 and 33 of Title 10, U.S. Code, provide broad authority to the Department of Defense (DOD) to establish certain accession and retention standards for servicemembers. These standards set minimum thresholds in areas such as educational aptitude, physical fitness, and medical fitness that must be met for an individual to enter military service. DOD policies establish the medical fitness standards required to enter, or be retained, in the Armed Forces. In certain instances, applicants or current servicemembers may develop, present with, or have a history of a medical condition or physical defect that would be disqualifying for entry into or continued military service. There are approximately 434 disqualifying medical conditions, including a human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. While DOD policy prohibits the accession of any applicant who tests positive for HIV, current servicemembers who become infected may continue to serve. HIVAIDS in the Military The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) describes HIV as a chronic viral infection that attacks an individual's immune system. HIV can be transmitted when certain of one's bodily fluids (e.g., semen, blood, breast milk) are injected into the blood stream or come into contact with mucus membrane or damaged tissue of another. Untreated HIV infections can lead to Acquired Immunodeficiency Disease Syndrome (AIDS). DOD's Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center estimates that there are approximately 350 servicemembers diagnosed with HIV annually. The rate of newly diagnosed HIV infections among servicemembers tested (also called the seroprevalence rate) in 2017 was 23 per 100,000. This rate is lower when compared to the general U.S. population, ages 20-34. Figure 1 illustrates trends in HIV incidence rates in the military since 1990. Across the active components, the seroprevalence rate (per 100,000 servicemembers) in 2017 was highest in the Navy (30), followed by the Army and Air Force (17), and the Marine Corps (15). Among the reserve components, the seroprevalence rate was highest in the Army Reserve (38), followed by the Army National Guard and Marine Corps Reserve (32), Navy Reserve (23), Air Force Reserve (17), and Air National Guard (10). Entry into Military Service In general, DOD policies prohibit applicants with laboratory evidence of HIV infection (i.e., HIV+) from entering military service. All applicants typically undergo a comprehensive medical examination, including HIV screening, at a military entrance processing station or military treatment facility (MTF). For applicants to the U.S. Service Academies, the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, or other officer candidate programs, HIV screenings are conducted within 72 hours of arrival at the training site. Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) cadets and midshipmen must be tested prior to the program's commencement. Figure I. Rates of New HIV Diagnoses Among Servicemembers, 1990-2017 10 01 o.a $292 '3 1 1995 1 19 I8 ' C 02 io222o4,w2oo! uo2o07 aw2 O 20 22! t4 2 or 21I6201 Source: Department Health Agency, Medical Surveillance Monthly Report, Review of the U.S. Military's Human Immunodeficiency Virus Program: a Legacy of Progress and Future of Promise, Vol. 25, No. 9, September 2018, https://go.usa.gov/xmQ6z. Notes: *Data is through June 30, 2017. Includes active and reserve component members. ps:I crsreportscong ress.go

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