Cracking the Code: Best Practices for Implementing HIV Opt Out Testing
Title: Cracking the Code: Best Practices for Implementing HIV Opt Out Testing
Date: June 09, 2026
Time: 01:00 PM ET
Presenters: Paul Drain - MD, MPH, FIDSA and Christopher Chao - MD
Cracking the Code: Best Practices for Implementing HIV Opt Out Testing
Strengthen Your Routine Testing Practices & Align with Epidemiologic Trends
Even seasoned urgent care and primary care clinicians are often surprised by the data: Across the U.S., thousands of people remain undiagnosed with HIV—not due to high-risk behaviors, but because testing never occurred.
Despite clear national guidelines, opt‑out HIV testing remains underutilized in urgent and primary care settings due to time constraints, perceived low risk, stigma, and concern about patient judgment.
This webinar brings together a leading epidemiologist and a frontline urgent care physician to unpack these barriers using real‑world data, practical tools, and proven strategies that translate seamlessly into everyday clinical workflows. Participants will leave with actionable insights to strengthen routine testing practices and better align care with current epidemiologic trends.
If you think you already know this—or your clinic already does it well—the data may surprise you.
Learning Objectives
This webinar will help you:
- Analyze current epidemiologic data to explain why most missed HIV diagnoses occur among people who are perceived as “low risk”
- Identify common myths, assumptions, and systemic barriers that undermine effective opt‑out HIV testing
- Apply evidence‑based best practices and small workflow modifications to increase HIV testing rates without adding visit time or burden
- Evaluate your own clinical setting’s approach to opt‑out HIV testing and identify opportunities for improvement
Fisher Healthcare is approved as a provider of continuing education programs in the clinical laboratory sciences by the ASCLS P.A.C.E.™ Program. One P.A.C.E.™ credit-hour will be provided for this complimentary basic level program.
Presenters
Paul Drain
MD, MPH, FIDSA
Dr. Paul Drain is a board-certified physician, clinical research director, and professor of global health and medicine at the University of Washington in Seattle. For over two decades, he has been an academic teacher for medical students, doctoral researchers, and fellows on subjects of social medicine, global health, and longevity at Harvard Medical School, Stanford University, and the University of Washington.
Christopher Chao
MD
Dr. Christopher Chao currently serves as the medical director for WakeMed Urgent Care and WakeMed Occupational Health—roles he has held since 2023 and 2025, respectively. Chao has practiced extensively across urgent care, family medicine, and community health settings, including long‑standing clinical leadership at WakeMed Urgent Care in Cary, North Carolina.