Asturian pharmacies will conduct cancer screenings and HIV tests

The Principality of Asturias, through the Department of Health, the Health Service of the Principality of Asturias (SESPA), and the Official College of Pharmacists of Asturias, have signed an agreement to perform rapid HIV detection tests in pharmacy offices and for these to participate in public health screening programs for colorectal, cervical, and breast cancer, oral health, smoking cessation, and the control of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). The agreement was signed on September 15, 2026, and is published as an annex to the Resolution of September 23, 2026, of the Department of the Presidency, Demographic Challenge, Equality, and Tourism, in the Official Gazette of the Principality of Asturias (BOPA) no. 188, of September 29, 2026 (Code 2026-07827).

The agreement was authorized by an Agreement of the Government Council adopted at its meeting on August 10, 2026, and is published in compliance with article 11.8 of the Law of the Principality of Asturias 2/1995, of March 13, on the Legal Regime of the Administration, as amended by the Law of the Principality of Asturias 4/2025, of November 19. It is signed by the Minister of Health, María Concepción Saavedra Rielo; the managing director of SESPA, Juan José Alonso Ordiales; and the president of the Official College of Pharmacists of Asturias, María Teresa Méndez Bravo.

Three objectives and a network of accredited pharmacies

The purpose of the agreement comprises three lines of action:

• The performance of rapid detection tests for HIV infection in pharmacy offices.
• The participation of pharmacies, according to the criteria agreed upon between the parties, in the dissemination of public health programs linked to health prevention and promotion: cancer screenings (colorectal, breast, and cervical), oral health, smoking cessation, and STD control.
• The development of the training activities necessary to achieve these objectives.

The Department of Health will establish the criteria to consider participating pharmacies as eligible and will assume the training of personnel; the Official College of Pharmacists will select and accredit the offices, purchase and distribute reagents and materials, and manage healthcare waste. Accredited pharmacies must display a visible poster with the service hours and have trained pharmaceutical staff.

Six euros for the user and twelve for the college

The third clause establishes the economic obligations for each test performed:

• The requesting user will pay 6 euros to the pharmacy office.
• The SESPA will pay 12 euros to the Official College of Pharmacists of Asturias.
• The college will send the supporting documents to the Department of Health before the 10th day of the following month, and the Delegated Treasury of the SESPA will process the payment orders before the 10th day of the following month.
• The Department of Health assumes the training: up to 1,100 euros annually for a speaker and a maximum of 10 teaching hours per year at 87 euros per hour (up to 870 euros annually).

Twenty-minute test and hospital referral

The annex of the agreement details the procedure. The rapid test detects HIV antibodies and/or antigens and provides the result in 20 minutes; it is performed on users over 16 years of age, with pre- and post-test counseling and a guarantee of anonymity and confidentiality. A window period of three months from the last risky practice is warned, after which the test must be repeated if the result is negative without having met that period.

In the event of a positive (reactive) result, the pharmacy will refer the person to the reference hospital of their health area for diagnostic confirmation and will contact the center about 20 days later to check the result. The document includes the reference Internal Medicine and Infectious Diseases services in the hospitals of Avilés, Jarrio, Oviedo, Cangas del Narcea, Mieres, Gijón, Arriondas, and Riaño-Langreo, as well as the telephone numbers of the Citizen Anti-AIDS Committee and the STI units of Oviedo and Gijón.

Two years of validity and annual evaluation

The agreement is finalized with the consent of the parties and will be effective once registered in the Agreement Registry of the Autonomous Community and published in the BOPA. Its validity is two years from publication, extendable for up to four additional years by means of an addendum. A joint monitoring commission is created, chaired by the General Directorate of Public Health and Mental Health Care, which will meet at least once a year, and an annual evaluation of the program is planned during the month of February with statistical data disaggregated by sex.

The measure provides continuity to a collaboration that began with a pilot program in 2016-2017, was formalized in an agreement authorized in 2018, and was renewed in the one signed on December 30, 2020, in effect since January 1, 2021. The novelty is the expansion of the framework: Asturian pharmacies will no longer be limited to the early diagnosis of HIV and will now act as dissemination points for the main preventive programs of public health, with cancer screening and oral health among the priorities. For users, the practical effect is closer access to the HIV test for six euros and a direct channel of information regarding screenings and risk habits at their usual pharmacy.

Source: Official Gazette of the Principality of Asturias (BOPA), no. 188 of September 29, 2026, I. Principality of Asturias — Other Provisions, page 1 (official reference: Code 2026-07827).