In recognition of National Latino AIDS Awareness Day, part of Hispanic Heritage Month, Planned Parenthood Federation of America is joining the national call to action for Latinos to protect their health by getting tested and learning about HIV. National Latino AIDS Awareness Day is a nationwide community mobilization campaign seeking to raise the visibility of HIV/AIDS within the Latino community.

Latinos are disproportionately affected by HIV. In the U.S., there are more than 1.1 million people living with HIV/AIDS, including approximately 220,000 Latinos, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released a new analysis that just over half of Latinos with HIV are getting the care they need. According to the CDC, Latinos account for 21 percent of new HIV infections and contract HIV at more than three times the rate of non-Latino whites, making HIV/AIDS the sixth-largest killer of Latinos aged 25 to 34 in the United States.

To prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS, it’s vital that people who are sexually active educate themselves about sexually transmitted infections (STIs), practice safer sex by using condoms, and get tested regularly for HIV. Planned Parenthood health centers are among the nation’s leading providers of HIV screening ─ in 2012, Planned Parenthood health centers provided 700,000 HIV tests. Planned Parenthood health centers offer low-cost STI testing throughout the year, and our doors are open to everyone. For more information on where to get tested for HIV, visit plannedparenthood.org.