The Department of Health (DOH) urged on Sunday, 7 September, sexually active persons to undergo human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) testing every three months.

"We have so many treatment centers that offer screening. There are also self-test kits for HIV. If you go to testing centers, they are free," DOH Assistant Secretary Albert Domingo said in a radio interview.

"You don't have to wait for HIV symptoms to manifest before you get tested. If you are sexually active, you should at least undergo HIV testing every three months," Domingo explained.

The Health official said that more than 15 to 24-year-olds are getting tested.

"That means our message has reached them and the stigma has done down. But it is still not enough because our testing rate right now if only 57 percent. Our goal is 95 percent," he added.

Recent DOH data revealed 57 newly diagnosed HIV cases recorded from January to March this year, making the Philippines the top country in the Western Pacific with the highest number of HIV cases.

The Health department also logged a 500-percent increase in HIV cases among those aged 15 to 25.

In June, the DOH urged President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. to declare HIV a national public health emergency due to a surge in new cases.

According to DOH, if not contained, the Philippines could see over 400,000 HIV cases by the end of 2025.

Last year, the country reported about 215,000 individuals living with HIV.