AIDS and behavior
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We conducted an in-person survey of New York City (NYC) pharmacies to assess the availability, accessibility, and price of the over-the-counter, rapid HIV self-test kit. NYC pharmacies were stratified into high, moderate and low morbidity neighborhoods by the HIV diagnosis rate of the neighborhood in which the pharmacy was located. A random sample of 500 pharmacies was taken [250 from high morbidity neighborhoods (HighMN) and 250 from low morbidity neighborhoods (LowMN)]. ⋯ Median price was US $42.99 without variability across neighborhoods. The rapid HIV self-test had limited availability and access in retail pharmacies. The high median price measured suggests that cost remained a barrier.