Free AIDS tests offered by Clark County

Cheryl Miller

Saturday, June 26, 1999 | 10:33 a.m.

Two Clark County health offices will stay open late Monday to accommodate people who want to be tested on National HIV Testing Day.

The Clark County Health District expects to provide 100 free tests between 8 a.m. and 7 p.m. at the main office on Shadow Lane and the eastside location on North Nellis Boulevard. The North Las Vegas and Henderson offices will also do HIV testing during regular hours, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

"It's a good reminder once a year for people who think, 'I've put myself at risk' or 'I've never been tested before,' " health district spokeswoman Cherie Filler-Maietta said.

All tests are confidential, Filler-Maietta said.

Blood testing takes five to 10 minutes and results are available in about a week. People must return to the clinics to receive the results.

"We talk to the clients as far as what behavior they're engaging in that's putting them at risk and about how to protect themselves and their loved ones," Filler-Maietta said.

"If they test positive, we get them plugged into our adult-evaluation clinic," which provides additional bloodwork testing and referrals to medical care, financial help and housing, she said.

Through May, 3,096 AIDS cases had been reported in Clark County and of those, 1,506 have died. Additionally, 2,119 people have been infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.

Children, women and minorities have the fastest-growing infection rates.

Fewer Americans are choosing to remain anonymous when they are tested for HIV at federally funded clinics: The number of anonymous HIV tests dropped 27 percent between 1995 and 1997, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Officials attribute part of the drop to the emergence of the home AIDS testing kit that allows people to test themselves outside a clinic. Or, people may feel less stigma surrounding HIV and AIDS as they becomes more treatable.

Free AIDS tests will be offered by the Clark County Health District at these offices:

Main Office

625 Shadow Lane, Annex A 8 a.m.-7 p.m. 383-1397

Eastside

560 N. Nellis Blvd. 8 a.m.-7 p.m. 437-4643

HIV testing will be offered at the offices, which will be open during regular business hours:

Henderson

129 W. Lake Mead Drive 8 a.m.-4 p.m. 564-3232

North Las Vegas

3262 Civic Center Drive 8 a.m.-4 p.m. 642-3525

For information, call the state AIDS hotline at (800) 842-AIDS.

The Associated Press