Last was a good year for National HIV Testing Day! The thirtieth anniversary of the CDC's first reports of a new disease syndrome we now know as HIV/AIDS came just three weeks before testing day, June 27, and the press love to keep a good story going. So National HIV Testing Day, 2011, got a big push from the press, and the day turned into what we all were hoping for:
● Thousands of Americans got tested! Thousands more heard the Take the Test, Take Control message.
● Tens of thousands of National HIV Testing Day posters were shipped to local testing event organizers or downloaded from the web. Click HERE to see the posters:
● Mayors across the country joined the Mayors Campaign Against HIV by participating in public testing events and declaring June 27, 2011 to be National HIV Testing day in their own cities. It's a great way for people who need to hear the Take the Test, Take Control message hear it from local leaders they respect. Click HERE to see who joined the Mayors Campaign last year!
● We kicked off the weekend before Testing Day with a Capitol Hill press conference attended by Members of Congress, Capitol Hill staff, HIV community leaders, and press. It's a great way to reach the Hill crowd and make sure they know more testing and earlier treatment do not just save lives, they reduce demands on the Federal budget by reducing the number of new HIV infections. Click HERE to read about the press conference and see Members of Congress getting tested.
Representative Lee at the AHF testing van
Barbara Chinn and Brian Hujdich receive Positive leadership Awards at the press conference
● We promoted Testing Day to another important audience by opening the June 27 trading day at NASDAQ. Click HERE to learn more and see NAPWA and friends preparing to ring the bell.
CHF's Catherine Abate, NASDAQ's Eric Bernbach, Frank Oldham, Jr.,
and mayors Ron Davis and Johnny Ford prepare to ring the bell
Our thanks to all the people and organizations that helped National HIV Testing Day 2011 happen! Especially:
● Orasure Technologies, for supporting the Mayors Campaign financially, arranging testing events, and printing and distributing posters.
● Gilead Sciences for sponsoring the press conference, and Congresswoman Barbara Lee and her office for all their help in making it possible to hold it on the grounds of the Capitol.
● HealthHIV and the Black AIDS Institute, for financial support and helping open doors in mayors' offices across the country.
● The Kaiser Family Foundation and the GREATER>AIDS campaign, for coordinating their testing awareness promotional materials and press outreach with National HIV Testing Day and the Mayors Campaign Against HIV.
● More than one hundred mayors who issued proclamations in support of National HIV Testing Day or promoted it by particpating in a public testing event.
Washington, DC Mayor Vince Gray takes the test
Thanks to all, and we'll see you soon for National HIV Testing Day 2012!
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