It is National HIV/AIDS Testing Day and Midlands residents can get tested for free at a an event in Hopkins Wednesday night.
/ MGN
HOPKINS, SC (WACH) - It is National HIV/AIDS Testing Day and people can get tested for free at a an event in Hopkins Wednesday night.
The Richland County Recreation Commission and the South Carolina HIV/AIDS Council are hosting a testing day cookout at 150 Hopkins Park Road from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday.
The public is invited to attend the free, family event where the SC HIV/AIDS Council's mobile unit will be available for free HIV testing and other heath screenings.
All tests will be free and confidential.
Authorities with the Richland County Recreation Commission report that the Centers for Disease Control say South Carolina currently ranks eighth among states in the rate of AIDS with Columbia ranking sixth in the nation among all cities with a population of 100,000 or greater.
Janet Tapp with the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control's STD/HIV Division says options for HIV testing in community-based settings have increased in recent years, which provides greater access for persons to know their HIV status.
According to officials with DHEC, the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that more than 1.1 million Americans live with HIV, and approximately 230,000 of them are unaware they are infected with the virus. DHEC statistics show more than 15,100 people are known to be living with HIV in South Carolina. It is unknown how many more people have HIV in the state and not know it because they have not been tested.
Click Here or call DHECs AIDS/STC Hotline at 1-800-322-AIDS for more information about HIV testing events and sites in South Carolina.
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