Mayor Phil Gordon Joins 4th Annual Mayors Campaign Against HIV In Support of National HIV Testing Day on June 27th
Mayor to Hold Press Conference and Take Rapid Oral HIV Test to Raise Awareness for HIV/AIDS and Encourage Local Residents to Get Tested Maricopa County Ranks #1 in Prevalent HIV/AIDS Cases among Blacks - Interviews Available
WHO: Mayor Phil Gordon, National Association of People with AIDS (NAPWA), and OraSure Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: OSUR)
WHAT: In observance of National HIV Testing Day 2008 (NHTD), Mayor Gordon has joined NAPWA and OraSure Technologies, manufacturer of the OraQuick ADVANCE® Rapid HIV-1/2 Antibody Test, in the fourth annual Mayors Campaign Against HIV – a national campaign to promote the importance of HIV screening and prevention.
Mayor Gordon will take a rapid HIV test and hold a news conference to educate the community on the importance of HIV/AIDS prevention. In Phoenix, OraSure is actively supporting National HIV Testing Day through its donation of 500 OraQuick ADVANCE® Rapid HIV-1/2 Antibody Tests to the Arizona Department of Health, which will be distributed to the locations below that are offering free and confidential HIV screening throughout Phoenix on June 27th.
OraQuick ADVANCE® is safe, painless and accurate –- it requires just a swab of oral fluid (no blood or needles) and is greater than 99% accurate. Results are available in 20 minutes.
June 27th is the 4th annual National HIV Testing Day, a nationwide effort led by NAPWA and executed in partnership with major government sponsors, hundreds of local health departments, community organizations, and HIV/AIDS advocacy groups to promote the benefits of HIV testing and prevention. Thousands of local and state community events are held across the country to encourage people to seek HIV testing and counseling.
FAST FACTS:
There have been a total of approximately 8,000 reported cases of HIV/AIDS in Maricopa County (Arizona Department of Health Services)
The number of Aids cases in Phoenix is growing at 12% per year (CDC)
In Arizona, about one in 350 people are HIV positive (Maricopa County Public Health Department)
About 25% of the 1.1 million HIV-positive in the U.S. do not know they are infected (CDC)
Although Black Americans represent only 12% of the U.S. population, they accounted for approximately half of AIDS cases diagnosed in the United States in 2005 (CDC)
HIV was the 4th leading cause of death for Black men and 3rd for Black women, aged 25-44, in 2004 (CDC)
The latest rapid testing technology utilizing oral fluid for HIV screening purposes, now enables healthcare practitioners to give patients their results in the same session – with relative ease and convenience.
Testing will be sponsored by Ebony House Testing will be sponsored by Maricopa Dept. of Public Health Contact the Arizona Department of Health Services at 602-364-3610 or visit HIVTEST
Get Tested?