Tuesday, January 27, 2015

Get Tested

WHERE TO GET AN HIV TEST

You can ask your healthcare provider for an HIV test. In addition, you can get an HIV test in many other places such as at many medical clinics, substance abuse treatment programs, community health centers, hospitals, Title X Family Planning Clinics, and even some pharmacies, as well as at many community-based organizations, AIDS services organizations, and even mobile testing vans.
One of the easiest ways to find a convenient HIV testing site is to use the HIV Testing and Care Services Locator. Just type in your ZIP code and, within seconds, you will get a list of HIV testing sites near you—including those that offer freeHIV testing!

Services
Enter your location, such as: "Washington, DC", or "20002".
For more information on this widget, please visit AIDS.gov.
Please contact contact@aids.gov with any comments, suggestions, or concerns.
You can also:
  • Text your ZIP code to KNOWIT (566948), and you will receive a text back with a testing site near you.
  • Call 800-CDC-INFO (800-232-4636) to ask for free testing sites in your area.
  • Contact your local health department.
  • Get a home testing kit (the Home Access HIV-1 Test System or the OraQuick In-Home HIV Test) from a drugstore.
Check out our National HIV Testing Day page for information and resources you can use to help promote HIV testing in your community.
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Tuesday, January 20, 2015

21 Survival Tips for Winter

Originally published by Healthy Black Men

It’s officially January 2015 and much of the nation is experiencing a winter chill like no other. In some areas, we’re talking -10 to -20 degrees. Anything below zero is serious business for health reasons. Heed these 21 safety tips for your home, your car, and your body.

8 Tips to Winterize Your Home

  1. Check and install weather stripping, insulation, and storm windows.
  2. Insulate water lines that run along exterior walls.
  3. Clean out gutters and repair roof leaks.
  4. Check your heating systems.
  5. Have your heating system serviced professionally to make sure that it is clean.
  6. Inspect and clean fireplaces and chimneys.
  7. Install a smoke detector; Test batteries monthly.
  8. Have a safe alternate heating source and alternate fuels available.

Get Your Car Ready for the Cold Weather in 7 Steps

  1. Service the radiator and maintain antifreeze level.
  2. Keep an extra phone charger inside your vehicle.
  3. Check tire tread or, if necessary, replace tires with all-weather or snow tires
  4. Keep gas tank full to avoid ice in the tank.
  5. Store a few energy bars in the glove box, just in case.
  6. Use a wintertime formula in your windshield washer.
  7. Create a winter emergency kit (e.g. compass, maps, flashlight, tire pump, etc.) for your car in case you become stranded.

6 Ways to Stay Safe & Healthy this Winter

  1. Maintain a moderate exercise regimen during winter months to avoid weight gain.
  2. Always be aware of the outside wind chill factor, dress accordingly.
  3. Make sure you are up to date on all prescription medications.
  4. Take time to stay hydrated; replace coffee with non-caffeinated tea.
  5. If you feel depressed, call a friend, a national hotline or go see a professional counselor.
  6. Always wear appropriate outdoor clothing; layers of light, warm clothing.
And as always for pet owners, be sure your pets are inside and hydrated. If you do have pets outside make sure they have a safe, dry place to retreat when temperatures dip and they always have fresh water available. Be sure to check on the very young and elderly and even single moms caring for young children. Emergencies can strike at any time. Be safe.

Partial content from this article provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Image courtesy of Monroe News/AP.
Click here to to original article.
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Tuesday, January 13, 2015

Resolutions to Keep in 2015

Originally Published by Healthy Black Men

Out with the old and in with the new year! This new year gives us a chance to do the things we’ve always wanted and to undo those things we kind of messed up. So for 2015 we offer 21 suggestions for your resolution menu to definitely prioritize and keep. Even if you manage to sustain a few resolutions throughout the year, consider yourself a rock star!

WHEN IT COMES TO SEX…

  1. Make it a priority to know your status for all sexually transmitted infections.
  2. If you are in a committed relationship, be sure to talk about family planning and contraception. Avoid slip-ups.
  3. If you are infected with a STI, any STI, be courageous and inform your sexual partner to reduce risk and increase trust.
  4. Stop having random, anonymous, and/or casual sex. The potential consequence just isn’t worth it.
  5. If you don’t like condoms, make this the year you use them, often and correctly.

WHEN IT COMES TO YOUR JOB…

  1. Make this the year, you transition from the dead-end job you hate to a position you might love. Plan. Make it happen. You can do it.
  2. Confidently ask for a raise. Be sure you deserve one, you know your value to the company, and can articulate it to your boss.
  3. Take it serious. This may be your ‘in between’ job until a better option emerges but treat it and your colleagues serious. You never know.
  4. Learn a new skill. Acquire more job-related knowledge. Build your work capacity and become more valuable in the process.
  5. Seek out a workplace mentor and set a 12 month professional goal. Be intentional about your career growth and recruit a mentor to assist.

WHEN IT COMES TO YOUR FAMILY

  1. Spend more time with your aging parents and grandparents more often throughout the year. Create memories. Diffuse old tensions.
  2. Take a family holiday. Even a ‘stay cation’ can bring family closer together. You don’t need an airline ticket to make family memories.
  3. Forgive those who trespassed against you. If that person was you, seek forgiveness. Move forward.
  4. Parents tell your kids what they do to make you proud. Affirm their interests. Let them know you appreciate the good things they do.
  5. Make sure the family legal business is in tact. Are wills, powers of attorney, medical wishes etc. known and up to date? Get to it.

Whatever your personal and/or professional goals for the new year; Make it better and brighter. After all, we get another chance to get it right in 2015.
Click here to see the original post.
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Tuesday, January 6, 2015

Need Health Insurance?

Originally published by Healthy Black Men
About 87% of people who selected health insurance plans through HealthCare.gov for coverage beginning Jan. 1, 2015 were determined eligible for financial assistance to lower their monthly premiums, compared to 80% of enrollees who selected plans over a similar period last year. In addition, more than 4 million people in both the state and federal Marketplaces signed up for the first time or reenrolled in coverage for 2015 during the first month of open enrollment.
That includes more than 3.4 million people who selected a plan in the 37 states that are using the HealthCare.gov platform for 2015, and more than 600,000 consumers who selected plans in the 14 states that are operating their own Marketplace platform for 2015.
Open Enrollment in the Marketplace runs from Nov. 15, 2014, through Feb. 15, 2015.  Consumers should visit HealthCare.gov to review and compare health plan options. Consumers shopping for health insurance coverage should sign up by Jan. 15, 2015, in order to have coverage effective on Feb. 1, 2015. 
If consumers who were automatically reenrolled decide in the coming weeks that a better plan exists for their families, they can make that change at any time before the end of open enrollment on February 15.
Consumers can find local help at: Localhelp.healthcare.gov/. Or call the Federally-facilitated Marketplace Call Center at 1-800-318-2596. TTY users should call 1-855- 889-4325. Translation services are available. The call is free.
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