In recognition of National HIV Testing Day on Saturday, Delaware General Health District officials say they want to remind local residents that the district offers free, anonymous HIV testing year round.

The district provides testing every Thursday from 7:30 to 9 a.m.; the third Tuesday of each month from 2 to 4 p.m.; and the last Tuesday of each month from 2 to 6 p.m. The tests are quick and easy, using an oral swab — no needles — with results in about 20 minutes, officials say.

They point out that more than 1.2 million people in the United States are living with HIV infection, and almost one in seven (14 percent) are unaware of their infection. Not knowing your HIV status endangers your health and the health of your sexual partners. Getting tested for the virus and learning your HIV status soon after infection can substantially delay the development of HIV-related illnesses, they say.

This health district’s HIV clinic is a local part of a national HIV/AIDS effort to lessen the number of and provide access to life-extending care for persons with the disease.

For more information, visit DelawareHealth.org or call the clinic at 740-203-2040.