HIV is still a concern in the United States.

An estimated 1.2 million people in the U.S. are living with HIV, and that number grows by almost 50,000 every year. according to the U.S. Centers of Disease Control and Prevention. One in eight people who have HIV don’t know it.

“If we can get them in and get treatment, that will lower their risk of infecting someone else,” said Chip Kraus, a Barren River District Health Department disease intervention specialist.

That’s the purpose of National HIV Testing Day on June 27. Medical professionals want people to know their status.

“It’s a day to remind people to get the facts. If anyone believes they are at risk for HIV they can call their health department,” Kraus said. “The people that need to get tested most are people who are high risk – have more than one sex partner, intravenous drug users or those with (sexually transmitted diseases). (Having STDs) makes your body more open to getting other infections such as HIV.”

There’s still a lot of fear about getting tested, Kraus said.

“Getting tested and treated early can get the viral load (amount of virus in the blood) to an undetectable level. It lowers the risk of transferring it to another person,” he said. “Ninety percent of all new cases are preventable by having a person get tested and getting proper medical care. That’s why it’s important to get tested and know your status.”

The health department offers $5 rapid tests, which are a finger stick. It takes about 20 minutes to get results.

“It’s just a screening, so that’s going to let us know if you’ve been exposed. We’ll do a blood draw and send that the Frankfort, where they’ll do a confirmatory test,” Kraus said. “That usually takes about a week. When results come in, we’ll have the patient come in to get the results. We have the patient come in whether it’s positive or negative so we can counsel them. Just because you get a call from the health department doesn’t mean it’s a bad thing.”

Getting tested and treated for all STDs is $25 to $35, depending on income, Kraus said.

“You’re tested for everything because if you’re at risk for HIV you’re at risk for everything,” he said.

Tests are done by appointment. The clinic performs about 30 HIV tests a month, Kraus said.

“We’ll try to schedule it as quickly as possible,” he said. “If you believe you have been exposed, this is something we want to take care of.”

If you test positive and need help paying for medicine, programs are available, Kraus said.

The health department also does free HIV testing from 2 to 4 p.m. the second Friday of each month at The Medical Center Health and Wellness Center at 1857 Tucker Way.

“We’re on call,” said health department Health Promotion Director Lisa Houchin. “If they have someone who wants to be tested they call.”

Representatives from the health department have gone to other places to offer free and confidential screenings, Houchin said.

“We have gone to places where there is more of a high-risk population,” she said.

Knowing your status is important, Houchin said.

“They can seek treatment and protect other people and take care of themselves,” she said. “They want to know so there wouldn’t be a potential to infect someone else.”

Dr. Lass El Lakkis, a local infectious disease doctor, works with HIV patients. He said the main difference in current treatment from that in the past is the new medicine available.

“We’ve had medicine for HIV for a long time. They had many side effects,” he said. “Medicine comes every few months. There are fewer side effects. Most people will never have trouble with them. They have it under control.”

While there is no cure for HIV, people who have it can have a normal life, El Lakkis said.

“This medicine works as they take it. If they don’t take it, it won’t be very effective anymore,” he said. “It’s like how insulin works with diabetes.”

HIV is spread through sex, blood and birth, El Lakkis said. Tests to check the viral load of an HIV patient are taken often before finally spreading out to every six months. The viral load can be low, making it less likely to transmit the virus during sex, but it’s still preferable to use condoms to try to prevent transmission.

“The reason why we don’t have a cure is because (HIV) has a tendency to hide in the lymph nodes,” he said. “Even though we can suppress it, we can’t cure it 100 percent.”

That’s why it’s important for those with HIV to take their medicines, keep vaccinations such as hepatitis A and B, pneumonia and flu shots up to date and get their liver, kidney, viral load and white blood cells checked every six months, El Lakkis said.

“It’s recommended that everybody check for HIV because it is treatable. Many people don’t know they have HIV until it’s advanced. If we know who has it, it can be treated,” he said. “Even if it’s advanced it can be treated, but they can have complications. We know it can be treated because we have effective medicine.”

— For more information about HIV testing, call the health department at 270-781-2490.

— Follow features reporter Alyssa Harvey on Twitter @bgdnfeatures or visit bgdailynews.com.