CDC Focuses HIV Testing Push in Area

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will be targeting the Hyattsville area, along with nine other U.S. cities, in the opening phase of an expanded awareness campaign to increase the rate of HIV testing among African-American women.

“Nearly 1 in 30 African-American women will be diagnosed with HIV in their lifetimes,” said Dr. Kevin Fenton, director of CDC’s National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD and TB Prevention, in a CDC press release. "They have the power to learn their HIV status, protect themselves from this disease, and take charge of their health.”

The campaign launched on a day when the L.A. Times reported on the findings of the ISIS study, which found an HIV infection rate of nearly 25 percent in a group of 2,100 mostly black women living in six U.S. cities, including Washington D.C. The results were many times what researches expected to find. 

According to the CDC, the higher rate of HIV infection in some black communities along with other social, environmental and financial factors, puts black women at a particularly greater risk of contracting the disease unknowlingly.

"Financial dependence on male partners may limit some women’s ability to negotiate safe sex," reads the CDC announcement. "HIV stigma, far too prevalent in all communities, may also discourage black women from seeking HIV testing."

The multimedia blitz, anchored by the motto "Take Charge. Take the Test.", was previously piloted in Philadelphia and Cleveland, where the CDC says more than 10,000 women attended campaign events. Soon you can expect to see billboards, hear radio ads and speak with community liaisons about the importance of HIV testing for African-American women. 

According to a staff report from The Afro-American, the CDC chose to target Hyattsville because its position near Washington, D.C., and cultural ties to other Maryland cities could help spread the campaign's message across multiple jurisdictions. 

“We hope to extend the reach of this campaign to multiple cities throughout the nation, help empower many more women to take control of their health, and help break the silence about HIV in their communities,” said Dr. Jonathan Mermin, director of CDC’s Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention, in the press release. 

Along with Hyattsville, the Take Charge. Take the Test campaign will be rolled out in Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Houston, Memphis, Tenn., Newark, N.J., New Orleans, and St. Louis.