Many states have laws about a patient’s right to “informed consent.” For example, the California Patient’s Guide says that you “have a right to know all risks, benefits, and treatment alternatives before consenting to any treatment.” This Patient’s Guide goes on to say that “informed consent is more than merely your agreement to a particular treatment or procedure. Informed consent is your agreement to a proposed course of treatment based on receiving clear, understandable information about the treatment’s potential benefits and risks.” The case law cited by the Guide for this statement (Cobb v. Grant) says that you must “receive sufficient information to make a meaningful decision” regarding your healthcare.

However, chances are that you were not given “sufficient information” or “clear, understandable information” by your doctor or hospital or clinic doctor about the benefits and risks of taking an HIV test, either prior to taking the test or after receiving the test results. Therefore, you probably did not have the opportunity to give your informed consent to the procedure.

Read through the following list of things that would constitute lack of informed consent, and if you find one or more that are true in your own case, keep reading when you’re finished with the list…

• 1. I was not informed that there were risks associated with merely taking an HIV test, as stated by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health on their website.

• 2. I was not informed that the FDA has never approved any test for the diagnosis of HIV infection.

• 3. I was not informed that the so-called HIV tests are not a test for HIV, but for HIV antibodies.

• 4. I was not informed that “there is no recognized standard for establishing the presence or absence of antibodies to HIV-1 and HIV-2 in human blood,” as stated on the printed insert that comes with an HIV ELISA Antibody test. In fact, I was never shown that printed insert.

• 5. I was not informed that the proteins used in any HIV Antibody test have never been proven to be unique or specific for the HIV virus, or that many of the proteins used in the test kits have been found to be associated with things other than HIV in the human body.

• 6. I was not informed that no HIV test has ever been validated; that is, there is no controlled study that proves what percentage of people testing HIV-Positive have been confirmed to have active HIV virus in their blood by a viral isolation culture, and what percentage of people testing HIV-Negative have been confirmed not to have active HIV virus in their blood.

• 7. I was also not informed that scientific studies have shown that the HIV ELISA Antibody test can be wrong as much as 90% of the time, or warned that I might have a false positive test result and what that would mean.

• 8. I was not informed that there are over seventy conditions that can cause a false positive reaction on an HIV Antibody test, or asked prior to or after taking the test whether I might have had one or more of those conditions that could create a false positive on my own test.

• 9. I was not informed that if my test came back positive, it only signified that I might have the antibodies to HIV. However, in every other case, having the antibodies to a virus means that a person is said to be immune from the disease that virus could cause, and I was not shown the scientific studies or the medical basis for claiming that having the antibodies to HIV is any different.

• 10. I was not informed that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had made an arbitrary decision in 1987 that a positive HIV test results equaled a current infection with HIV, and yet gave no scientific basis for that decision.

• 11. I was not informed that processing my HIV Western Blot Antibody test varies from laboratory to laboratory. Nor was I informed why my doctor had decided that the laboratory results he received would be correct in my case and the scientific basis for that decision.

• 12. I was not informed that there are many different ways to interpret an HIV Western Blot Antibody test, depending on whose standards are being used. I was not informed that the results of my test could be different if interpreted using either one of the CDC standards compared to the Red Cross standards compared to the FDA’s standards, for example. Nor was I informed which standard would be used to interpret my test or why my doctor had decided that the standard being used would be correct in my case and the scientific basis for that decision.

• 13. I was not informed that Great Britain and other countries refuse to allow the use of the HIV Western Blot Antibody test, or the reasons why.

• 14. I was not informed that the so-called HIV viral load tests use “probes” and “primers” based on the same un-validated non-specific proteins used in the HIV Antibody tests, and therefore were not proven to identify HIV in my blood. I was also never shown the printed insert that came with an HIV viral load test that states that the test was “not intended to be used as a screening test for HIV or to confirm HIV infection.” Nor did my doctor explain why he was using the test for exactly that purpose despite the disclaimer, or show me the scientific studies which prove it could be used to determine the viral load of HIV.

• 15. I was not informed that the so-called HIV viral load test results vary greatly from laboratory to laboratory, or why my doctor had decided that the laboratory results he would receive would be correct in my case and the scientific basis for that decision.

• 16. I was not informed that people who have tested HIV-Negative on an HIV ELISA Antibody test or an HIV Western Blot Antibody test have been found with high HIV viral load results, posing severe questions about the accuracy of the HIV viral load tests.

• 17. I was not informed that the HIV viral load tests failed in 90% of the cases studied to predict the loss of CD4 cells, and accurately predicted the “progression to disease” (AIDS) in only 4% to 6% of HIV-Positives, or why my doctor decided that my HIV viral load test results would be accurate in predicting my “progression to disease” and the scientific basis for his decision.

• 18. I was not informed that CD4 cell counts vary greatly from day to day and hour to hour in a normal human being, and that “"variance in CD4 from… non-HIV related longitudinal fluctuations needs to be accounted for in analysis of the prognostic power of CD4 in HIV infection.” I was also not informed that perfectly healthy people can have low CD4 cell counts. Nor was I informed why my doctor had decided that the CD4 cell count in my case would be indicative of anything, much less an indication or marker for AIDS, and the scientific basis for his decision.

• 19. I was not informed that the diagnosis of AIDS in the United States can be based strictly on being HIV-Positive and having a CD4 cell count of 200 or below. I was also not informed that this definition of AIDS is not accepted by other countries (Canada, for example), and that by moving to Canada I would no longer have AIDS. Nor did my doctor explain how a disease can change definition when it crosses a national border or provide the scientific basis for that explanation.

• 20. I was informed of my HIV-Positive diagnosis after only an HIV ELISA Antibody test without an HIV Western Blot confirmation test, in violation of the CDC’s protocol.

• 21. I was also not informed that the Highly Active Anti-Retroviral Therapy (HAART) drugs that I was prescribed have been known for five years to cause more deaths from their side effects than the deaths recorded from AIDS-related illnesses. Nor was I informed that the newer HAART drugs are worse than the ones prescribed ten years ago.

• 22. As a result of having this information withheld from me prior to agreeing to take an HIV Antibody test/HIV viral load test/CD4 cell count, or taking the HIV drugs that I was prescribed, I was unable to give my informed consent and have suffered emotional and psychological trauma, family stress, and social rejection as a result of my doctor’s unsubstantiated HIV-Positive diagnosis and treatment.

If one or more of these statements is true for you, you may have grounds to file an official complaint about your doctor, clinic, or hospital for violation of your right to Informed Consent. These complaints are filed with your state’s appropriate medical review boards, who must investigate your complaint and hold a hearing for the accused doctor, clinic, or hospital.

Doctors, in particular, are terrified of their medical review boards, because these boards have the right to discipline these doctors up to and including taking away their license to practice medicine in that state.

Please understand that this is not some personal vendetta on my part toward the medical profession. I would not be alive today, or walking, had not a highly qualified surgeon fixed my broken neck.

I am also not accusing any doctor or clinic or hospital of intentionally deceiving you about these HIV tests or the HIV drugs. I don’t believe there are many doctors who have a clue what these tests do or don’t do, have never seen the printed inserts that come with the tests, and believe what they have been told by the pharmaceutical companies about the HIV drugs.

However, as Dr. Richardson said in this book, ignorance is no excuse. Your doctor, clinic, or hospital has an obligation to confirm the information they are given before treating you for any disease or performing any procedure. They also have an obligation to inform you about what they know and receive your informed consent prior to proceeding.

It is not enough any more for doctors to simply make a proclamation and expect you to follow their orders. It is also not enough any more for you not to question the medical profession or require them to live up to the standards set by Informed Consent laws.

While filing a complaint against your doctor or clinic or hospital will not change the results of your own HIV test, it may make you feel better; and it can definitely help those who come after you. If we can at least get all the doctors in the world telling their patients the truth about the HIV tests and HIV drugs before anything happens, we will probably have a lot more people saying, “No" to the tests.

If one or more of the statements above is true for you, you may also have a legal case against your doctor, clinic, or hospital. However, lawyers cost money and trials take a lot of time and energy. Filing a complaint with your state’s medical board is free, and takes very little time or effort. You don’t even have to appear at the hearing.

If you would like to file an official complaint against your doctor, clinic, or hospital, and need help at any point filling out the necessary paperwork , or have questions about your particular situation, please email me with the details, what state you live in, etc., and I will be happy to help.