Monday is National HIV Testing Day. A day established in 1995 to encourage people to get tested and bring awareness to the deadly disease. Still, one in eight people in the United States infected with the virus are unaware that they have HIV, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
In 2014, 16,740 DC residents were living with HIV, the Department of Health reported, which exceeds the World Health Organization’s definition of a epidemic (the number of new cases has, however, fallen over the past seven years). Routine testings are essential; here’s where you can get tested for free today around the entire Washington area.
Unity Health Care
1251-B Saratoga Avenue, NE
202-832-8818
Starting at 1 PM.
The Women’s Collective
1331 Rhode Island Avenue, NE
202-483-7003
9 AM to 5 PM. The center prefers if you arrive no later than 4:30 pm, because the test takes about 30 minutes.
Us Helping Us
3636 Georgia Avenue NW
202-446-1100
Testing ends at 4:30 PM.
Metro Health
1012 14th Street, NW suite 700
202-638-0750
Center hours are 8:30 AM to 7 PM. Call for testing hours.
202-745-7000
You can find Whitman-Walker’s mobile unit at:
Bright Beginnings (128 M Street, NW) 4 PM to 5 PM.
Turkey Thicket Recreation Center (1100 Michigan Avenue, NE) 5 PM to 6 PM.
Trinidad Recreation Center (1310 Childress Street, NE) 6 PM to 7 PM.
Goodman League (Barry Farm-Firth Sterling Avenue, SE) 7 PM to 8 PM.
Joseph Willard Health Center
3750 Old Lee Highway
Fairfax City
703-246-7100
Testing ends at 4:30 PM.
Dimensions Healthcare System
3001 Hospital Drive
Cheverly
301-618-2487
10 AM to 10 PM.
Briana A. Thomas is a local journalist, historian, and tour guide who specializes in the research of D.C. history and culture. She is the author of the Black history book, Black Broadway in Washington, D.C., a story that was first published in Washingtonian in 2016.
