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

Eustis, FL– The Florida Department of Health in Lake County will host their 10th Annual World AIDS day celebration of life event at Berry Park located at 2121 Johns Avenue, Leesburg, Florida on Monday, December 2, from 11:00 AM - 2:00 PM.  A portion of the National AIDS Memorial Quilt will be on public display and HIV testing and Hepatitis A vaccinations as well as flu shots will be provided at no cost. The event is free and open to the public.

World AIDS Day is a global campaign to end AIDS and help bring awareness of the disease worldwide. First organized by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 1988, the World AIDS Day theme for 2019 is “Ending the HIV/AIDS Epidemic: Community by Community.”

The most recent statistics state that Florida ranks third in the nation in the number of AIDS cases and at the end of February 2018 a total of 119,661 adults in Florida were living with HIV. With 4,906 new in 2018 as well as 1,918 new Aids cases in 2018.  In Florida, 30% of all cases were among persons aged 20-29. For 23 consecutive years HIV/AIDS has been the leading cause of death for black females between the ages of 25-44 and is currently the 3rd leading cause of death for black males ages 25-44.  In addition, the February 2018 statistics indicate the following for all the HIV/AIDS cases in Florida: Whites 23%, Blacks 43%, Hispanic race 32% with 2% being another race and MSM (men who have sex with men) are at 61%. New data also suggests that in Lake County we have reported 209 new cases of HIV in the last 5 years and 129 new cases of Aids.

It is important to know that every 9 ½ minutes, another person in the United States becomes infected with HIV. HIV/AIDS knows no boundaries; it affects all of us, regardless of our race, gender, or income. That is why it is important to “Take the Test, Take Control”.

In addition to the free rapid 20-minute testing offered at the event, the Florida Department of Health in Lake County can perform a mouth swab to test for HIV, which will be sent to the State laboratory. Results are available in approximately 2 weeks.

For more information, please contact the Florida Department of Health’s Disease Control Program office at 352-771-5547, visit our website at https://lake.floridahealth.gov/ or follow us on Twitter at @FLHealthLake

About the Florida Department of Health

The department, nationally accredited by the Public Health Accreditation Board, works to protect, promote and improve the health of all people in Florida through integrated state, county and community efforts.

Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter at @HealthyFla. For more information about the Florida Department of Health please visit www.FloridaHealth.gov.