February 7 marks National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, and Maryland health-care advocates see it as an opportunity to provide health-care options for people who are uninsured.

The state-run insurance exchange Maryland Health Connection has extended open enrollment through February 28. The AIDS Healthcare Foundation and Maryland Health Care for All! Coalition are jointly hosting events over the next week for uninsured residents of Baltimore and Prince George's County.

Michele Eberle, executive director of the Maryland Health Benefit Exchange, said for people with HIV/AIDS, having insurance is critical to afford medications.

"What's really important to know is that all of our plans cover prescription drug costs, and so that's very important," said Eberle. "If you're looking at having to buy drugs, or covered drugs that are very expensive, you want to make sure that you have health insurance that will cover that."

On Saturday, get free help with health-insurance enrollment from 9 am to 5 pm at the AIDS Healthcare Foundation's Baltimore clinic, and on February 7, at the group's Temple Hills Clinic from 10 am to 6 pm. There will also be HIV testing, music and giveaways at both events.

Seventy-one percent of the 33,000 Maryland residents living with HIV/AIDS are Black, according to 2019 data. Jeremy Myers, community mobilizer and activist of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, said getting coverage can improve health outcomes for all Marylanders.

"As we come up on Black History Month," said Myers, "I think it would definitely be on cue to mention how this affects not only the community at large, but the communities of color and poor communities. By getting people enrolled, I really think that will help with impacting how HIV and AIDS has affected our communities."

More than 180,000 Maryland residents have enrolled in coverage through the state health insurance exchange for 2022 so far, an all-time high.

Today is National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, and advocates say barriers remain when it comes to testing and social stigma. More than 40% percent of people currently living with HIV are Black, despite accounting for only 12% of the U.S. population.

Laura Cheever, associate administrator with the HIV/AIDS Bureau, Health Resources and Services Administration, said viral suppression treatment, in the form of daily medication, has allowed most HIV patients to live a successful and near-normal lives.

"So it's no longer a death sentence," Cheever said. "So, that's really important. And second, that person cannot transmit HIV sexually to other people. So it's important both for their health and for our work towards ending the HIV epidemic."

More than 87% of Black Americans living with HIV/AIDs are receiving medical care and viral suppression drugs, according to federal data. Cheever added that is a huge increase from the number of Black patients receiving treatment in 2010.

In 2020, North Carolina ranked in the top ten states for new HIV cases among adults and adolescents, with more than 1,000 residents newly diagnosed, most of whom are Black men, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Cheever said an ongoing challenge, especially in rural areas and in the South, is encouraging people to get tested.

"One in eight people living with HIV don't know they have it," Cheever said. "So, we need better testing. And we need people to come in here and stay in care, we estimate that of the 1.2 million people with HIV in this country, 250,000 are out of care. "

According to research focused on the deep South, common barriers to testing include transportation, cost, not knowing where to receive specialty care, stigma, and fear of others in the community finding out.

Today is National HIV Testing Day, and doctors and advocates for people living with HIV and AIDS are urging everyone to make sure they know their status by getting tested regularly.

People living with HIV can take medication to suppress their viral load to undetectable levels, at which point, they cannot sexually transmit the virus to someone else.

Dr. Laura Cheever, an infectious disease physician and associate administrator of the HIV/AIDS Bureau in the Health Resources and Services Administration, said about 1.2 million people in the U.S. have HIV according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, but one in eight does not know it.

"For a lot of people, there's still a lot of stigma around HIV," Cheever acknowledged. "They just don't want to know or don't want to have to deal with it. So, it is important to understand that HIV is a highly treatable disease."

Cheever added another reason some people do not get tested is, they assume their primary-care doctor takes care of it at their annual checkup, or when getting blood tests done at an urgent-care clinic or emergency room. But she cautioned most times, HIV testing is not a part of those appointments.

The New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services receives funding from the Ryan White HIV/AIDS program, as do cities and community-based organizations, to make sure testing and care are available. Cheever pointed out the funds go to providing medical care, doctors' visits, medication, lab work and essential support services, such as transportation or emergency housing.

"You can go to the CDC website, gettested.cdc.gov, and there you can put in your ZIP code and find a place to get tested near you," Cheever explained. "There are many places now where you can go to get free or low-cost testing mailed to your home, so you can do self-testing in the privacy of your own home."

For many people living with HIV, Cheever said treatment is one pill a day, and she added for those who may not have insurance or be able to afford the prescription, the Ryan White program can help.

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Today marks World AIDS Day, observed internationally to remember those lost to the HIV/AIDS epidemic and raise awareness about the disease.

In one of Ohio's most populous counties, health professionals are working to ensure people living with HIV have the services they need. Cuyahoga County's "Ryan White HIV/AIDS Part A" program has provided health services to those who do not have adequate insurance or financial resources since 1996.

Zach Levar, grant supervisor for the Cuyahoga County Board of Health, said one silver lining of the pandemic was learning how providers could reach more people through telemedicine.

"Clients that may not have wanted care in person might have found it a little bit more convenient to FaceTime with their doctor and check in with them that way," Levar explained. "Our clients have definitely appreciated it, we've heard anecdotally that different clients that may have been out of care are now linked to care because they've been able to access via telehealth."

Twenty-one percent of Ohioans who have been diagnosed with HIV live in Cuyahoga County, according to state data.

Levar said in honor of World AIDS Day, the county Board of Health has launched its first newsletter dedicated to HIV-related news and resources. It also plans to launch a social media campaign to help fight the stigma associated with HIV/AIDS.

Services the Ryan White program provides in the Greater Cleveland area include help applying for housing and benefits support, mental health resources, and group education for people recently diagnosed. Levar said the Board of Health has received two grants focused on HIV care and prevention, to help connect with at-risk residents.

"We've started working with the state to figure out who is not in care and trying to figure out ways to best reach those individuals," Levar outlined. "Figure out what their barriers are, really meet them where they are, and get them engaged in care, so that they can achieve the best health outcomes for themselves."

The two grants, totaling about $2 million, were awarded by the Health Resources and Services Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.