Baltimore Urges Gay Men: "Have Balls. Get Tested."

Baltimore is targeting black men who have sex with other men in its latest HIV and AIDS awareness campaign dubbed "Status Update."

On Wednesday, the Baltimore City Health Department, unveiled the campaign with the tagline "Have balls. Get tested." There was a 72 percent increase in the amount of gay and bisexual black men testing positive for HIV at city STD clinics between 2005 and 2011, according to a department news release.

The awareness campaign is intended to help connect black men who have sex with other men with free HIV testing. By visiting the Status Update website they can get information about testing and prevention in a "culturally sensitive, community centric format."

"Making Baltimore a healthier city means improving the health of all city residents," Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake said in the release. "Status Update brings critical prevention and testing information to the communities most affected by HIV through targeted social marketing, prevention education, increased access to testing, and condom distribution."

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