HIV testing in Georgia — where to get tested, free options, what to expect
The number
2,200 new HIV diagnoses in Georgia in 2022, 71% among Black residents — all preventable with timely testing and linkage to PrEP.
Ryan White Part B
Georgia Department of Public Health, HIV/AIDS Epidemiology Section
State ADAP
Georgia AIDS Drug Assistance Program
Income cap 400% FPL
State PrEP-DAP
Georgia PrEP Assistance Program
Where to get tested in Georgia
58,000 people are living with HIV in Georgia, and 71% of new diagnoses in 2022 were among Black residents. Getting tested is the first step — the CDC recommends at least one HIV test for every adult 13-64, and annual testing for anyone sexually active with more than one partner or injecting drugs. Rapid tests return results in about 20 minutes from a fingerstick; laboratory tests take a few days but catch infections sooner after exposure (as early as 10 days with a nucleic-acid test).
Where to test for free in Georgia: every county health department runs an STI / HIV testing clinic, and Georgia Department of Public Health, HIV/AIDS Epidemiology Section contracts with community-based organizations to operate walk-in rapid testing with evening and Saturday hours. No ID or insurance is required at these sites. Confidentiality is protected — state law requires public-health HIV testing results to stay out of your medical record unless you authorize release, and anonymous testing (no name collected) is available at most community sites.
What to expect: a pre-test conversation about risk and what a positive result would mean, the test itself (either fingerstick or blood draw), and post-test counseling. If the rapid test is reactive, the counselor draws blood for a confirmatory Western blot or antigen/antibody test. If you're positive, you'll be linked to a Ryan White Part C clinic for same-week HIV primary care and ADAP enrollment if you qualify by income.
The Georgia HIV info line is 1-800-551-2728; staff can point you to the nearest free testing site, schedule PrEP, and help you navigate insurance or no-insurance options. Long-time Black residents name Grady Ponce de Leon Center (Emory Infectious Diseases Program) and THRIVE SS as the local institutions that show up consistently — both are listed below.
Grady Ponce de Leon Center (Emory Infectious Diseases Program). Emory's Ponce de Leon Center at Grady Hospital in Atlanta is the largest Ryan White-funded HIV clinic in the United States, serving more than 6,000 people living with HIV annually — over 80% Black — and hosting the CDC-funded Getting to Zero Atlanta implementation science program.
THRIVE SS. THRIVE SS is Atlanta's Black-gay-men-led HIV service organization, founded in 2015 at the Counter Narrative Project. THRIVE SS runs rapid testing, peer navigation, and the annual BLACKOUT HIV summit — the largest Black-queer-centered HIV convening in the South.
For Black families in Georgia
The South carries the heaviest HIV burden in the country: Black Southern residents make up roughly 14% of the U.S. population but account for more than half of new Black HIV diagnoses nationally. In Georgia, 71% of new 2022 HIV diagnoses were among Black residents. That figure reflects unequal access to testing more than underlying risk: a Black person in Georgia waits longer for an HIV diagnosis on average than a white peer, and late diagnoses translate directly into later treatment starts and worse outcomes. The community organizations listed below — particularly those flagged as Black-community anchors on the directory — operate rapid-testing sites specifically designed to close that wait-time gap.
Named HIV testing + PrEP sites in Georgia
Grady Ponce de Leon Center
Atlanta, GA • 1-404-616-2440
THRIVE SS
Atlanta, GA • 1-404-549-8455
Someone Cares Inc. of Atlanta
Marietta, GA • 1-770-919-1901
AID Atlanta — Spring Street Office
Atlanta, GA • 1-404-870-7700
Positive Impact Health Centers — Midtown
Atlanta, GA • 1-404-589-9040
Positive Impact Health Centers — Duluth
Duluth, GA • 1-404-589-9040
Fulton County Board of Health — Central STD/HIV Clinic
Atlanta, GA • 1-404-612-0884
DeKalb County Board of Health — Kirkwood Clinic
Atlanta, GA • 1-404-294-3700
SisterLove, Inc.
Atlanta, GA • 1-404-505-7777
Savannah Health Services — St. Joseph's/Candler
Savannah, GA • 1-912-819-4000
Where to get help in Georgia
- Georgia HIV info line: 1-800-551-2728 — staff can find the nearest free testing site, schedule PrEP, or help enroll you in ADAP.
- Georgia Department of Public Health, HIV/AIDS Epidemiology Section landing page: https://dph.georgia.gov/hivaids.
- Federally Qualified Health Centers in Georgia: every FQHC offers sliding-scale HIV testing and has certified application counselors on staff. See our FQHC directory for the state at /clinics/ga/.
- State health data for Georgia: for state-level HIV mortality, maternal health, and life-expectancy context by race, see /health/georgia/.
- Georgia Medicaid: Medicaid is the largest single payer of HIV care in most states. See /medicaid/georgia/ for eligibility + enrollment.
- CDC NPIN testing-site finder: gettested.cdc.gov accepts a zip code and returns every free + low-cost HIV testing site within 50 miles.
References & primary sources
- Georgia Department of Public Health, HIV/AIDS Epidemiology Section: https://dph.georgia.gov/hivaids.
- CDC HIV Surveillance Report 2022: cdc.gov/hiv/library/reports/hiv-surveillance.html. Source for state-level new diagnoses and race-stratified counts.
- HRSA HIV/AIDS Bureau, Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program grantee list: ryanwhite.hrsa.gov/grants/part-b.
- NASTAD ADAP Monitoring Project 2024 Annual Report: nastad.org/adap-monitoring-project. Source for ADAP income cap + enrollment + PrEP-DAP data.
- AIDSVu state profile: aidsvu.org/state/georgia/.
Data refreshed: