Get tested, and not just for COVID-19 — get tested for HIV and AIDS, too.
National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day (NBHAAD) is observed annually on February 7. This year’s theme is “We’re in This Together” to increase awareness, create discussion and feature the work being done to limit HIV in Black communities in the United States and to encourage people with HIV in these communities.
Raising awareness of HIV within Black communities and providing information on access to care could include something as simple as using the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s Let’s Stop HIV Together campaign resources found on https://www.cdc.gov/.
“Even when we are physically apart, we all have a role to play in ending HIV,” the campaign encourages.
Let’s Stop HIV Together hopes to empower communities, partners and healthcare providers to reduce HIV stigma and promote prevention, testing and treatment among all people in the United States, according to the campaign website. Campaign resources abound for partners and other organizations that want to strategically play a role in preventing HIV and helping people with HIV stay healthy.
For those looking to share the campaign’s HIV prevention and education posts and images on social media, tag #NBHAAD and #StopHIVTogether leading up to NBHAAD and on the day of the observance, February 7.
Locally, the reported HIV cases in 2018 per a 2019 Michigan Department of Health and Human Services report show that the city has a 33.7 percent diagnosis rate per 100,000 residents. The figure is several times higher than Michigan’s Lenawee County with 9.1 new cases per 100,000.”
Black men between the ages of 15 and 29 who have sex with other men typically experienced the newest cases of HIV, the report added.
The Detroit Health Department has two programs to assist people living with HIV in Southeastern Michigan. The Ryan White Program provides medical and support services, and the Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA) program helps with housing.
For further assistance, contact a Linkage to Care Specialist at any one of the following agencies:
- Carefirst Community Health Services (313) 846-5020
- Community Health Awareness Group (313) 963-3434
- Health Emergency Lifeline Program (313) 832-3300 or (888) 435-6555
- Matrix Human Services (877) 931-3248
- Oakland Livingston Human Service Agency (248) 209-2626 or (248) 876-2949
- Unified (formerly AIDS Partnership Michigan) (313) 446-9800 or (800) 872-2437
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