15,000 Individuals Test Positive for HIV in South Carolina Alarming Surge Raises Public Health Concerns
CHARLESTON, S.C. – According to the South Carolina Department of Public Health, there are about 15,000 people in the state who have HIV or AIDS. This includes children and teens.
Palmetto Community Care is a group that gives free HIV tests. A spokesperson for the organization says that eight of the ten states or U.S. territories with the most new HIV diagnoses per 100,000 people are in the Deep South.
One of them is South Carolina.
Richard Reams, director for Palmetto Community Care, says, “It’s important that we talk about it, especially on Southern AIDS Awareness Day, because there are so many layers that make testing hard for people.”
He said that HIV/AIDS testing doesn’t always work for one group of people.
As part of regular health care, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say that everyone between the ages of 13 and 64 should get checked for HIV at least once.
Because Tuesday is Southern HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, Palmetto Community Care will not only give away free tests, but they will also give away gift cards that can be used for future tests.
Says Reams that the reason they fight for HIV and AIDS findings is to help get rid of any stigma that might be there.
“What worries me more is that the south keeps ranking so high in the number of diagnoses per person. It’s not that there are more, but that we’re not meeting the deadlines we should be,” says Ream.
For the Campaign for Southern Equality, Ivy Hill is in charge of gender justice.
Hill says that they tell people to get checked and learn about their choices.
Hill says, “I think there’s a lot of old rhetoric that still sticks around. Being HIV positive used to be seen as so bad that it was like death.”
They also say that the medicine has gotten better.
“It’s not scary; it’s quick and easy, and if you do get a positive, well, medicine has come a long way, and there are treatments that can get you back to a level where you can’t be detected. That means you’re also on the undetectable list, and people live long, healthy, happy lives,” Hill says.
Reams says that you need to know your position to know what things you can do.
Palmetto Community Care tests for HIV/AIDS every other day, from 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., and on Tuesdays from the same time.