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Get tested for free on national HIV testing day

The Florida Department of Health is urging people to find out their HIV status.
Credit: CBS
The governor of Indiana declared a public health emergency Thursday in a county shaken by a recent outbreak of HIV infections.

TAMPA, FLA-- Everyone loves freebies. And the Department of Health is banking on that with various locations offer free HIV tests on June 27 in recognition of National HIV Testing Day.

The Department of Health is encouraging residents to get tested for their health.

Studies show that if an HIV positive person starts antiretroviral therapy soon after diagnosis, their long-term prognosis improves significantly.

DOH Human Services Program Director James Roth acknowledges that "some people avoid getting tested because they are afraid of testing HIV positive. What many do not know is that with the right medication, HIV can become undetectable in lab tests. If HIV is undetectable for six months, it becomes untransmittable."

According to the latest numbers from the Center for Disease Control, Florida was fourth in the country for new HIV transmissions in 2016, after Washington D.C, Georgia, and Louisiana.

"In the United States, one in seven people are infected with HIV and do not know it, causing 50 percent of new infections," says Human Services Program Director James Roth.

Which is why, besides the testing, the DOH has another freebie to watch for. They say that by the end of the year, all 67 county health departments in Florida will be offering medication that, if taken daily, can prevent new HIV infection 90 percent of the time.

Currently, the medication, called Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) is available at the DOH Sexually Transmitted Disease Clinic at the University Area Community Health Center. The first 90-day supply is free.

Free HIV testing will be offered in the following locations on June 27:

ST. PETERSBURG:

AHF Healthcare Foundations' state-of-the-art HIV/AIDS clinic in South St. Pete, located at 3400 26th Ave S, St. Petersburg, FL 33711.

TAMPA:

DOH Specialty Care Center at E. Kennedy Blvd. in Tampa from 7 a.m to 3 p.m.

EPIC

4703 N Florida Ave, Tampa, FL 33603-3734
(813)-237-3066

BayCare

4600 N Habana, Tampa, FL 33614
(813)-870-4460

BayCare

4600 N Habana, Tampa, FL 33614
(813)-870-4460

10841 Little Rd in New Port Richey for free rapid HIV and Hepatitis C testing from 9 a.m until 3 p.m. Rapid test results will only take 20 minutes.

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