RSS Feed
Newsletter
Widget
Have you been Tested for HIV/AIDS?
Published by Pamela Gentry on Tuesday, June 30, 2009 at 12:19 am.By Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.)
I got tested. President Obama and the First Lady got tested. Did you?
National HIV Testing Day was June 27th, and I wanted to lead by example to encourage others to get tested.
Testing is easy and painless – it can be done by a simple swab inside your cheek, without a needle or blood – and you can get your results back in half an hour.
I encourage all Americans to get tested for HIV and educate themselves about the prevention and treatment of HIV and AIDS.
According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) more than one million Americans are living with HIV/AIDS — and more than one out of five people living with HIV do not know they are infected.
HIV/AIDS affects men and women of all races and ethnicities.
However, Blacks and other minorities however are disproportionately impacted by the epidemic. Combined, minorities represent 67% of new HIV infections, 71% of new AIDS cases and 67% of people living with HIV/AIDS.
One out of two Blacks living with HIV is unaware of being infected. This means the disease is not detected until it has advanced.
That is why getting tested and learning your HIV status is extremely important. Those who test positive can begin to get lifesaving medicine and prevent spreading the virus to loved ones. Those who test negative can continue to take steps to protect themselves from infection. In any case, knowledge is power and knowing your HIV status allows you to make informed decisions.
We need to increase the availability of HIV tests and encourage individuals to get tested so we can reduce the spread of HIV and AIDS.
To encourage and enable more Americans to be tested for HIV, I have introduced the Routine HIV Screening Coverage Act (H.R. 2137). This bill would require health insurance plans to cover routine HIV tests under the same terms and conditions as other routine health screenings.
As chair of the Congressional Black Caucus in 1998, I spearheaded the establishment of the Minority AIDS Initiative, and I have continued efforts to expand it. I sent a letter signed by a total of 53 Members of Congress, many of them my colleagues in the Congressional Black Caucus, to House leaders who make key funding decisions requesting that the Minority AIDS Initiative receive $610 million in fiscal year 2010. This would be a considerable increase from the funding level of about $400 million per year during most of the Bush Administration.
The community-based organizations and health care providers who receive grants through the Minority AIDS Initiative have been effective in delivering HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention programs to minority communities in culturally and linguistically appropriate ways. That is why we are seeing some encouraging signs.
For example, the Kaiser Family Foundation reports that more Black Americans (68%) and Latinos (57%) than Whites (42%) have taken an HIV test.
However, we still have a lot of work to do with regards to HIV/AIDS prevention, awareness and testing.
Many clinics, health care centers and community organizations provide testing, and in some cases the test is even free.
To find a testing site near you, call 1-800-CDC-INFO ( 1-800-232-4636 ) or visit http://hivtest.org
“Take the test, take control.”
Have you been tested for HIV? What additional steps can we take to reduce the stigma of HIV/AIDS in our community?
Who cares!!! My boyfriend thinks the same with me. He is eight years older than me, lol. We met online at ~~~ http://www.AgelessMatch.com ~~~ a nice and free place for younger women and older men, or older women and younger men, to interact with each other. You may wanna check it out.
Are you serious? That is one of many ways that HIV makes its way through wider age ranges. You should care! Who smarter, you or him? Somebody definately needs to take proper precausions to reduce the risk of contracting HIV. Age doesnt matter when it comes to the spread of HIV. You should be more careful!!! “Who cares!!!” YOU SHOULD!!!!!!!
pay no atention to mandy. she’s leaving this post everywhere without reading the articles. she’s almost as ignorant as david
until people check their social behavior nothing will change. eustis
until people check their social behavior nothing will change. eustis
repent ye, the kingdom of heaven is at hand!!!!
IS IT TRUE THAT THE AIDS VIRUS CAN CAN STAY IN YOUR SYSTEM FOR A PERIOD OF TIME, AND EVEN THOUGH YOU TAKE BLOOD TEST YOU CAN COME UP CLEA. THEN VIRUS CAN BECOME ACTIVE ONE DAY EVEN AFTER TEN YEARS??? I THINK THAT SOME PEOPLE HAVE A NATURAL DEFENCE AGAINST THIS VIRUS, GIVEN THE LIFE STLYE THEY LIVE AND THEY HAVE NOT COME DOWN WITH THE VIRUS.
I never got tested b4
Why dont we ask Maxine Waters about the creation of the AIDS VIRUS! The US Special Virus Program is responisible (boydgraves.com)! These demons created the virus, so then there must be a cure! A cure that has been hiddden from the masses while millions die so these devils can play god and decrease certain segments of the population (blacks) ! The World Health Organization is responsible for the Aids infection in Africa. They gave the native people bogus Smallpox vaccines that were purposely infected with the AIDS virus in the late 1970,s. Almost 30 years later, Africa’s rate of infection will wipe out the continent in 60 years if the cure is not released! How come the lawsuits against the US government have not been made public? How come the patented cure for Aids (US Patent #5676977) has been swept under the rug? Why is Congress sitting on the truth while millions of people die that could have been cured! The Patent office does not give patents to things that dont work! How come Dr. Boyd Graves is being kept quiet regarding his proof, and resaerch into the US Special Virus Program? FOX NEWS & CNN have not mentioned it one time, despite how important it is! Give us some answers Maxine, not more political BS! I geuss its more profitable to keep people sick than to cure them! Black Power!
I think testing can be beneficial especially if you have not been tested before and it is done properly. However, when one does get tested its imperative that they prepare mind and body for the particular event. And, it is also imperative to have alternative positive psychological thought patterns if things don’t go as expected ” Successfully” like it went for me. Moreover, if one is committed in the study of Science as well as the hands on application of it including the herbal remedies which is a science of botany they can have a higher probabilities of surviving with the ” Virus ” by way of the scientific application if one applies it committing. Moreover, they can greatly increase their life to a level of benefit where they too can have a normal life with in reason. However, I would like to point out an integral component of this application and that is commitment which is the key factor to the above equation. And, the best way to visualize this is to look at the TV show of the ” Incredible Hulk “. Although, it is fantasy it still depicts a good committed point of view if I’m not mistaken. Look at the way Dr. david banner who was running around looking for a cure. The man would not give up hope at all. He tried various experiments. This is the same case and point of commitment one would need to help themselves to seek a longer life if they wanted to do it independently. That is the drive that one must have to be fully committed to the cause of finding a cure or treatment for themselves if they want to do it independently. So, the bottom line is knowledge is power as long as it is applied correctly and in a timely manner which includes security measures that will aid the individual in a moralistically and ethically manner in today’s society as a should be ” humanitarian “. Now, why have I said this ? The reason being is because people make choices in life and mistakes. However, its imperative that their mistakes does not fall over to others who they maybe interacting with which is why the humanitarian component has been thrown into this above equation. This way if an individual did obtain the virus he/she should still exercise their moralistic and ethical judgment and protect the others who they are interacting with as a humanitarian by way of using certain security measures as well as scientific applications. So, there you have it. A person really doesn’t have to get tested if they have the above knowledge, application, commitment, and humanitarianism like stated above to protect society at large due to his or her life is now being placed in a containment at their own choice while protecting society by way of the above various resources and applications. I don’t think this is too hard to grasp. “Correct”
[...] Have you been Tested for HIV/AIDS? | Pamela on Politics | BET.com [...]