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CLEVELAND, Ohio – Greater Ohio's Planned Parenthood, Larger than AIDS, and Walgreens Drugstores have teamed up with the City of Cleveland to offer free HIV testing.
This effort is part of National HIV Testing Day. People can have free screenings on Wednesdays between 10 am and 7 pm at Walgreens at 4071 Lee Road in Lee Harvard Mall.
Counselors will also be available to answer questions about HIV prevention and treatment, including the use of pre-exposure prophylaxis, a drug that offers effective protection for people whose HIV test is negative.
About 1.1 million people in the United States have HIV, according to estimates by Centers for Disease Control. The CDC estimates that 15% of infected people do not know that they are HIV positive.
The CDC recommends that people aged 13 to 64 must be tested for HIV at least once. People at high risk of HIV infection should be screened annually.
Nearly 4,400 people in Cleveland are living with HIV or AIDS, according to the Cleveland Department of Public Health.
National HIV Testing Day is an awareness campaign launched by the National Association of People with AIDS and the CDC. This year's theme is "Doing what it takes to test HIV".
Walgreens and Greater Than AIDS, a national organization that provides public information on AIDS, works with local health departments and community organizations to offer free screenings at Walgreens stores in more than 180 cities.
The Cleveland Health Unit also offers HIV testing throughout the year at the T. F. McCafferty Health Center, 4242 Lorain Avenue, and J. Glen Smith Health Center, 11100 St. Clair Avenue.
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