Iowa LULAC gives grant to Polk County Health for HIV/AIDS testing, outreach to Latinos

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For immediate release

Oct. 21, 2016

DES MOINES, IA - Iowa's League of United Latin American Citizens has given grant money to the Polk County Health Department in a partnership to educate the Latino community about HIV/AIDS and to promote testing.

This month marks National Latinx AIDS Awareness Day. As part of this day, Iowa LULAC gave the money to be used to conduct outreach and awareness of the virus/disease to the Latino/Hispanic communities, promote HIV testing and provide HIV prevention information and access to care.

"We want to ensure our people have access to educational materials, testing and the care needed to keep them safe and healthy," said Joe Enriquez Henry, vice president of the Midwest Region for National LULAC and a Des Moines resident.

Last year, 15 percent of the HIV tests conducted by the county health department were for Latinos.

Iowa LULAC's Council 307 also collaborated with the county health department this summer to conduct testing at Des Moines’ Capital City Gay Pride event. Mobile health clinic were set up to provide private and confidential testing and risk reduction counseling to individuals.

There were 32 HIV tests and 31 syphilis tests performed with one positive HIV test result.

The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) is the nation's largest and oldest civil rights volunteer-based organization that empowers Hispanic Americans and builds strong Latino communities. Headquartered in Washington, D.C. with 1,000 councils around the United States and Puerto Rico, LULAC’s programs, services and advocacy address the most important issues for Latinos, meeting critical needs of today and the future.

For more information, contact Joe Enriquez Henry at 515.208.7312; or Melissa Walker at 515.681.7731 or mwmediaconsultants@yahoo.com, or visit www.lulaciowa.org.

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