The AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) is teaming up with Walgreens and Kaiser Family Foundation’s “Greater than HIV” initiative to offer free HIV testing across metro Atlanta on National HIV Testing Day, June 27.
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Dr. Robyn Neblett Fainfair, the new Director of HIV Prevention at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), will join partners at a southwest Atlanta event.
The initiative aims to address the city’s high HIV rates. Atlanta ranks among the top five U.S. cities for new HIV diagnoses, with Black individuals disproportionately affected.
Testing will be available from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at participating Walgreens locations. No appointment is necessary. AHF will provide free lunch for the first 100 people tested at the Metropolitan Pkwy. location (2711 METROPOLITAN PKWY SW Atlanta, GA 30315).
“The only way to know your status is to get tested,” said Dr. Fainfair. “With advances in prevention and treatment, we’re closer than ever to ending HIV.”
CDC data shows that one in seven people with HIV in the U.S. are unaware of their status. In Atlanta, 85% of cases are men, with Black males having a diagnosis rate nearly six times that of white males.
The testing initiative is part of a long-standing partnership between Kaiser Family Foundation, Walgreens, and community organizations. Since 2011, the program has provided over 80,000 free HIV tests nationwide.
Counselors will be on-site to answer questions about HIV and sexually transmitted diseases. They will also provide information on prevention methods, including PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis), and treatment options.
This year’s event marks the highest level of participation in the program’s history, both in terms of testing partners and store locations involved.
Editor’s Note: This story has been updated to reflect the location of the free lunches. It’s only the Metropolitan Pkwy. location.