In time for World AIDS Day - which is Saturday - Kaiser announced the allocation of $70,000 in grants: $45,000 of which will go to Planned Parenthood Shasta Diablo, while $25,000 will go to Delta Sigma Theta Sorority's Vallejo chapter.
"It's an awesome program. It's done some really good things," Kaiser Permanente community benefits specialist Cynthia Verrett said of the funding, which is part of $1.3 million in grants distributed statewide.
Each of the recipient programs focuses on at least one of the following areas: HIV/AIDS awareness, prevention, screening and diagnosis, or treatment, Verrett said.
Planned Parenthood will use its funds to help implement rapid HIV testing at its Vallejo, Fairfield, Vacaville and Napa locations.
The goal is to increase HIV screening to meet Center for Disease Control guidelines, which call for routine testing all adults regardless of perceived risk level, said Planned Parenthood vice president of medical services Phyllis Schoenwald.
Unlike traditional testing, which can take up to a few weeks to get results, rapid test outcomes are available in a matter of minutes.
"It speeds up the whole process. The whole point is to get people into care earlier," Schoenwald said.
Delta Sigma Theta sorority's funds will be used to raise awareness about HIV/AIDS in Vallejo schools.
Both Planned Parenthood and Delta Sigma Theta have received Kaiser grants in years past and have been very successful, Verrett said.
E-mail Sara Stroud at sstroud@thnewsnet.com or call 553-6833.
