Turkey
| National policy | |
|---|---|
| National policy/strategy or official recommendations on HIV testing? | Yes |
| Who can administer HIV tests? | |
| Restrictions on who can legally administer HIV tests? | Yes |
| Which groups can legally do HIV testing? |
|
| Further comments | Legally, the test has to be carried out in a healthcare setting (not at a community center for instance). |
| Free HIV testing | |
| HIV testing free to all who want it? | Yes for all |
| Further comments | Some LGBT association have a relationship with municipality in Istanbul where you can take the test free. |
| Is free HIV testing available? | Yes in certain places |
| Further comments | |
| HIV testing restrictions | |
| HIV testing access restricted for some groups/populations? | No |
| Which groups are restricted | |
| Further comments | |
| Availability of testing in non-clinical settings | |
| Is testing available in any of the following ways? | |
| Postal HIV sampling legal? | No |
| Home HIV testing legal? | No |
| Community testing at NGOs legal? | No |
| Community/outreach event testing legal? | No |
| Other | |
| Rapid tests used by community based testing services/initiatives? | Don't know |
| Anonymity/Confidentiality of HIV testing | |
| Anonymous testing available? | No |
| If yes, please give details | some laboratory and NGO's campaign. National Identity Number must be given. But the result (if positive) is recorded under a basic code (initials of your name, father's name and last numbers of your national identity number). If you want anonymous testing, very few private laboratories do that; but this is illegal! |
| If not, why not, what sort of information is required and is there any promise of confidentiality? | Currently (2016) anonymous testing is illegal in Turkey. Some institutions and NGO's campaign for changes in the legislation and regulations to allow for anonymous testing . It is the case that National Identity Number must be given. But the result (if positive) is recorded under a basic code (initials of your name, father's name and last numbers of your national identity number). It is reported that some private laboratories do carry out anonymous testing illegally |
| Discrimination & equality | |
| Legislation | |
| Legislation protecting the rights of people with HIV? | No |
| Further comments | Activists drafted a national law for HIV/AIDS, including protection of PLHIV; but that's all. There is not any national legislation. |
| Other key populations | |
| Needle exchange available for people who inject drugs? | Yes |
| Further comments | There are conflicting reports. The respondents confirmed of a Needle exchange program but the website https://www.hri.global/global-state-of-harm-reduction states there is no program available. |
| Opiate substitution therapy available? | Yes |
| Further comments | drug treatment centers. Availability of OST is also confirmed by information available on https://www.hri.global/global-state-of-harm-reduction |
| Are PWID (people who inject drugs) excluded from HIV treatment while actively using drugs? | No |
| Further comments | |
| Legal to sell sex? | Yes |
| Further comments | see above For more information: http://sexualrightsdatabase.org/map/21/Adult%20sex%20work/385/Turkey |
| Legal to buy sex? | Yes |
| Further comments | Yes and No. There are state owned brothels; it is legal to work there; but it is illegal to sell sex outside of state's brothels. For more information: http://sexualrightsdatabase.org/map/21/Adult%20sex%20work/385/Turkey |
| Access to HIV Treatment | |
| Free access to HIV treatment? | Yes, for some |
| Further comments | Free access to all people registered in the health security system (majority). But not accessible to those who are out (or temporarily out) of the system and to migrants/refugees |
| Status and access to HIV treatment and care in your country | |
| Access to HIV treatment restricted for certain populations with HIV? | Yes |
| Which groups are restricted? |
|
| If more than one of the above populations selected, please give more information | Migrants/refugees/asylum seekers all have different status in terms of their access to health. It is complicated. Some are entitled to free treatment, but this is generally "on paper"; many, especially African immigrant pregnant HIV positive women have severe problems of rejection from hospitals. |
| Status | |
| Country status | Non-EU / Non EFTA |
| Mobility in Europe | |
| Do the following groups/populations have legal access to HIV treatment? (i.e provided on the same basis as citizens of the country) | |
| Legal treatment access: Other EU migrant nationals | N/A |
| If yes but exceptions, please describe | |
| Legal treatment access: general non-EU migrants | Yes but there are exceptions |
| If yes but exceptions, please describe | Must be registered in the health system; complicated. |
| Legal treatment access: Non-EU migrants with asylum/refugee status | Yes but there are exceptions |
| If yes but exceptions, please describe | Complex situation - Syrians have access but not most others. |
| Legal treatment access: Non-EU migrants who are undocumented | No |
| If yes but exceptions, please describe | |
| Further comments | Some foreigners. Syrians have a special status; therefore they have access to healthcare in Turkey. However, for other refugees and migrants, there are restrictions. |
| About this data | |
| Last minor revision | 12 July 2016 |
| Last major revision | 19 December 2016 |
| Published | 19 January 2017 |
| Data sources | As well as responses
from in-country individuals and organisations information and data was taken
from the following sources:http://ecdc.europa.eu/en/healthtopics/aids/Pages/monitoring-dublin-declaration.aspx Sex Work Laws These included https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prostitution_by_country#Europe The Global Network of Sex Work Projects www.nswp.org and country sources and http://sexualrightsdatabase.org/map/21/Adult%20sex%20work and http://spl.ids.ac.uk/sexworklaw Drug use Needle exchange information was taken from Harm Reduction International who have an interactive tool https://www.hri.global/global-state-of-harm-reduction Criminal Law http://criminalisation.gnpplus.net has useful info about the criminal law and is searchable by country as well as http://www.hivjustice.net/site/countries/ MSM http://ilga.org/what-we-do/state-sponsored-homophobia-report/ (2016) |
| Data contacts | Responses received from Ege University (www.egehaum.com), Kaos GL (www.kaosgl.org), Positive Living Association (www.pozitifyasam.org) and Red Ribbon Istanbul (www.kirmizikurdele.org) |