Beginning in 2009, the federal government will require all states to purchase and provide anonymous rape exams if they wish to continue receiving funds under the Violence Against Women Act, which provides money for women's shelters and law enforcement training. The exams allow for the collection of evidence (skin, hair, blood, saliva or semen) from rape victims, but identify the victims only by a serial number, maintaining anonymity. The exams are sealed, preserving the evidence, and are only opened if the victim decides to press charges.

A 2006 U.S. Department of Justice survey reported 272,350 instances of sexual assault, but estimated only 41 percent of rapes and sexual assault are actually reported to police. The hope is that the availability of the exams will encourage victims who may fear the societal stigma of rape or are too afraid or traumatized to go forward with pressing charges to come forward to collect evidence before it's too late and to receive necessary medical treatment.

"Sometimes the issue of actually having to make a report to police can be a barrier to victims, and this will allow that barrier to cease, to allow the victim to think about it before deciding whether to talk to police," said Carey Goryl, executive director of the International Association of Forensic Nurses.

Though federal agencies like the FBI have been endorsing such a requirement for almost a decade, states have previously balked at the option due to cost: forensic rape exams cost an estimated $800 each, which has led to many states requiring a police report to be filed with each rape exam. One caveat of the requirement is that each state will decide how many locations will offer the anonymous exams and how long the evidence will be kept, so it remains to be seen how widely available the exams will be. [Trib]