Vending machines sell HIV testing kits in Beijing universities

Eleven universities in Haidian district, Beijing, have installed vending machines that sell HIV testing kits, and another two are expected to join them by the end of this year. Such vending machines will be used in all universities in the district by the end of next year, according to the district’s center for diseases control and prevention.

Universities equipped with such machines include Peking University, Tsinghua University, Renmin University of China, Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, China Agricultural University, Beijing Jiaotong University, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing Forestry University, University of International Relations, and Beijing Baway University.

The market price for a kit is around $45 (298 yuan), but it is sold for only 30 yuan on campus. From drink vending machines, users can buy a kit containing an instruction leaflet and a urine sample container.

After the sample is dropped off anonymously into the receptacle in the machine, it will be sent to a designated professional body. Users will receive a code number, which can be used to check their results online in 10 days.

Thirty-seven kits were sold in the above-mentioned universities except Tsinghua University from Sept 27 to Nov 5, according to statistics from the district’s CDC. Fourteen samples were sent for testing, and all the test results were negative, which meant users were not infected with HIV.

Besides, similar vending machines were also installed in Communication University of China in Chaoyang district last year. Universities outside of Beijing such as Xiamen University, Southwest Petroleum University, and Harbin University of Science and Technology have also taken similar measures in recent years.