SPARTANBURG, S.C. (WSPA) – To commemorate World Aids Day, multiple groups will come together Monday the South Carolina State House in Columbia to discuss ending the national HIV epidemic by 2030.
South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control’s Ending the Epidemic SC will focus on educating people about the intersecting epidemics of HIV, STDs, viral hepatitis and substance use disorders.
On Dec. 3, DHEC will sponsor no-cost testing for these diseases at health care offices around the state.
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention said about 1.1 million people in the U.S. have HIV, and 1 in 7 people do not know they have it.
Nearly 20,000 people in South Carolina had been diagnosed with HIV infections, including AIDS, as of Dec. 31 2017, according to DHEC. Between 2016 and 2017, 1,500 were newly diagnosed with HIV/AIDS in S.C. Of those who were diagnosed, 66 percent were African American, 22 percent were white and eight percent were Hispanic.
Click here to find locations or call (855) 472-3432.
