HIV testing in North Dakota — where to get tested, free options, what to expect
The number
20 new HIV diagnoses in North Dakota in 2022, 35% among Black residents — all preventable with timely testing and linkage to PrEP.
Ryan White Part B
North Dakota Department of Health and Human Services, HIV Program
State ADAP
North Dakota Ryan White Part B Drug Assistance Program
Income cap 300% FPL
State PrEP-DAP
Not operated; federal Ready Set PrEP applies
Where to get tested in North Dakota
340 people are living with HIV in North Dakota, and 35% 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 North Dakota: every county health department runs an STI / HIV testing clinic, and North Dakota Department of Health and Human Services, HIV Program 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 North Dakota HIV info line is 1-701-328-2378; 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 Sanford Health Infectious Disease Clinic and Family HealthCare FQHC (Fargo) as the local institutions that show up consistently — both are listed below.
Sanford Health Infectious Disease Clinic. Sanford Health's ID Clinic in Fargo is North Dakota's only HIV specialty clinic and the state's Ryan White Part C grantee, covering the entire state through a combination of in-person and telehealth appointments; Sanford partners with Family HealthCare's Fargo FQHC for PrEP initiation.
Family HealthCare FQHC (Fargo). Family HealthCare in Fargo is North Dakota's largest FQHC and operates the state's only walk-in rapid-testing program with evening hours, serving new North American refugee communities along with the long-time Fargo-Moorhead Black community.
For Black families in North Dakota
In North Dakota, 35% of new 2022 HIV diagnoses were among Black residents. That figure reflects unequal access to testing more than underlying risk: a Black person in North Dakota 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 North Dakota
Where to get help in North Dakota
- North Dakota HIV info line: 1-701-328-2378 — staff can find the nearest free testing site, schedule PrEP, or help enroll you in ADAP.
- North Dakota Department of Health and Human Services, HIV Program landing page: https://www.hhs.nd.gov/health/hiv.
- Federally Qualified Health Centers in North Dakota: every FQHC offers sliding-scale HIV testing and has certified application counselors on staff. See our FQHC directory for the state at /clinics/nd/.
- State health data for North Dakota: for state-level HIV mortality, maternal health, and life-expectancy context by race, see /health/north-dakota/.
- North Dakota Medicaid: Medicaid is the largest single payer of HIV care in most states. See /medicaid/north-dakota/ 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
- North Dakota Department of Health and Human Services, HIV Program: https://www.hhs.nd.gov/health/hiv.
- 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/north-dakota/.
Data refreshed: