HIV testing in Colorado — where to get tested, free options, what to expect
The number
390 new HIV diagnoses in Colorado in 2022, 20% among Black residents — all preventable with timely testing and linkage to PrEP.
Ryan White Part B
Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, STI/HIV Section
State ADAP
Colorado AIDS Drug Assistance Program (CO-ADAP)
Income cap 400% FPL
State PrEP-DAP
Colorado PrEP Assistance Program
Where to get tested in Colorado
14,400 people are living with HIV in Colorado, and 20% of new diagnoses in 2022 were among Black residents. Getting tested is the first step — the CDC recommends at least one HIV test for every adult 13-64, and annual testing for anyone sexually active with more than one partner or injecting drugs. Rapid tests return results in about 20 minutes from a fingerstick; laboratory tests take a few days but catch infections sooner after exposure (as early as 10 days with a nucleic-acid test).
Where to test for free in Colorado: every county health department runs an STI / HIV testing clinic, and Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, STI/HIV Section contracts with community-based organizations to operate walk-in rapid testing with evening and Saturday hours. No ID or insurance is required at these sites. Confidentiality is protected — state law requires public-health HIV testing results to stay out of your medical record unless you authorize release, and anonymous testing (no name collected) is available at most community sites.
What to expect: a pre-test conversation about risk and what a positive result would mean, the test itself (either fingerstick or blood draw), and post-test counseling. If the rapid test is reactive, the counselor draws blood for a confirmatory Western blot or antigen/antibody test. If you're positive, you'll be linked to a Ryan White Part C clinic for same-week HIV primary care and ADAP enrollment if you qualify by income.
The Colorado HIV info line is 1-303-692-2700; staff can point you to the nearest free testing site, schedule PrEP, and help you navigate insurance or no-insurance options. Long-time Black residents name Denver Health Infectious Diseases Clinic and Colorado Health Network as the local institutions that show up consistently — both are listed below.
Denver Health Infectious Diseases Clinic. The Denver Health ID Clinic is Colorado's largest Ryan White Part C site, serving nearly 4,000 people living with HIV, with a dedicated Black Women's HIV Navigation Program that emerged from 2019 community listening sessions.
Colorado Health Network. Colorado Health Network (formerly Colorado AIDS Project) operates the Ryan White Part B care coordination for the state, with offices in Denver, Colorado Springs, and Grand Junction and a rapid-testing program at the Denver Center on Speer Boulevard.
For Black families in Colorado
In Colorado, 20% of new 2022 HIV diagnoses were among Black residents. That figure reflects unequal access to testing more than underlying risk: a Black person in Colorado waits longer for an HIV diagnosis on average than a white peer, and late diagnoses translate directly into later treatment starts and worse outcomes. The community organizations listed below — particularly those flagged as Black-community anchors on the directory — operate rapid-testing sites specifically designed to close that wait-time gap.
Named HIV testing + PrEP sites in Colorado
Denver Health Infectious Diseases Clinic
Denver, CO • 1-303-602-6000
Colorado Health Network — Denver Center
Denver, CO • 1-303-837-1501
Colorado Health Network — Colorado Springs Office
Colorado Springs, CO • 1-719-578-9092
Children's Hospital Colorado — Infectious Disease Clinic
Aurora, CO • 1-720-777-6839
The Center on Colfax LGBTQ Center — HIV Testing
Denver, CO • 1-303-733-7743
Where to get help in Colorado
- Colorado HIV info line: 1-303-692-2700 — staff can find the nearest free testing site, schedule PrEP, or help enroll you in ADAP.
- Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, STI/HIV Section landing page: https://cdphe.colorado.gov/hiv-and-sti-programs.
- Federally Qualified Health Centers in Colorado: every FQHC offers sliding-scale HIV testing and has certified application counselors on staff. See our FQHC directory for the state at /clinics/co/.
- State health data for Colorado: for state-level HIV mortality, maternal health, and life-expectancy context by race, see /health/colorado/.
- Colorado Medicaid: Medicaid is the largest single payer of HIV care in most states. See /medicaid/colorado/ for eligibility + enrollment.
- CDC NPIN testing-site finder: gettested.cdc.gov accepts a zip code and returns every free + low-cost HIV testing site within 50 miles.
References & primary sources
- Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, STI/HIV Section: https://cdphe.colorado.gov/hiv-and-sti-programs.
- CDC HIV Surveillance Report 2022: cdc.gov/hiv/library/reports/hiv-surveillance.html. Source for state-level new diagnoses and race-stratified counts.
- HRSA HIV/AIDS Bureau, Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program grantee list: ryanwhite.hrsa.gov/grants/part-b.
- NASTAD ADAP Monitoring Project 2024 Annual Report: nastad.org/adap-monitoring-project. Source for ADAP income cap + enrollment + PrEP-DAP data.
- AIDSVu state profile: aidsvu.org/state/colorado/.
Data refreshed: