From an anonymous reader. Even more on this ...

[him] moderator

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The testing by the military didn't begin until about 1996.  The cases found positive were cashiered on the same day.  While the negative side of this is being downplayed, this meant utter ruin for some families, as the entire family - often including extended families - were evicted onto the roadside and lost all income and rations.  Not only kids out of school, but household registrations were voided, and they were instantly destitute.  While some, but certainly not all, officers might have had some resources to fall back on, lower level personnel rarely had anything.  Initial shipments of HIV diagnostics were often split, with supplies disappearing into military hands for these purposes.  After sufficient fussing by staff of the importing agency, the military simply started procuring their own supplies.