Scientists, including Indian researchers, claimed in a new study that providing universal HIV testing for India's billion-plus population every five years can save millions of lives and prove to be a cost-effective approach to managing the epidemic. According to the study, it would meet international standards of cost-effectiveness and save millions of lives for decades to test every person in the huge population of India every five years.

The findings are based on a careful analysis of India's Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) epidemic using the Cost-Effectiveness of Preventing AIDS Complications (CEPAC) International model, a sophisticated statistical tool that has already been used in HIV policymaking in France, South Africa, and other countries.