FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH IN LAKE COUNTY WILL OFFER RESIDENTS FREE HIV TESTING 

January 29, 2016

Contact:
Noelda Lopez, Public Information Specialist
Noelda.Lopez@flhealth.gov
Office: 352-589-6424, After Hours: 352-728-7662

Lake County– The Florida Department of Health in Lake County will be offering free HIV Testing on Friday, February 5, 2016 from 1 PM to 3 PM at the Umatilla Health Center located at 249 E Collins Street, Umatilla, FL.  No appointments necessary.  
 
Observed Sunday, February 7, 2016 National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day (NBHAAD) is a national HIV/AIDS testing and treatment community mobilization initiative designed to encourage blacks across the nation to get educated, get tested, get involved, and get treated around HIV/AIDS.
 
According to the www.cdc.gov website, Black/African Americans continue to experience the most severe burden of HIV compared with other races and ethnicities.
 
“This is why is so important to know your status” said Diana Chesser, Health Service Representative for the Florida Department of Health in Lake County “get tested and have your partner tested as well”
 
Florida has been heavily impacted by the HIV/AIDS epidemic.  The state continues to rank number one in the nation with the cumulative number of HIV diagnosis.  According to the CDC, Blacks comprise only 14% of the adult population in Florida, but represent 41% of adult HIV infection cases and 52% of adult AIDS cases reported in 2014.  Among adults, one in every 38 black men and one in 60 black women were living with HIV in 2014, compared to one in every 170 white men and  one in every 1,049 white women.  Among blacks, gay and bisexual men, especially young men, are the most affected population
 
The Florida Department of Health has developed a comprehensive program for preventing the spread of HIV/AIDS and for providing care and treatment to those already infected.  This comprehensive approach includes HIV surveillance, education, prevention, counseling, testing, care and treatment.  For more information on HIV/AIDS please visit www.cdc.gov or call (352) 771-5547.
 
About the Florida Department of Health
The department works to protect, promote and improve the health of all people in Florida through integrated state, county and community efforts.
 
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