Today is World AIDS Day and there are many events planned to show support for human rights, access to medication and education.

Officials at the state Department of Health and Mental Hygiene say they are using the day to focus on reducing stigma and increasing prevention activities.

Activities will be held throughout the state “to encourage residents, stakeholders, and partners to embrace the vision of a Maryland with no new cases of HIV, experience local talent, show support for people living with HIV/AIDS, and reflect upon the lives of those that have been lost to HIV/AIDS.”

Several state health officials and Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake will be discussing the incidence of the disease in the state, current public health prevention and treatment programs, the impact of Health Care Reform, and the National HIV/AIDS Strategy from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Central Branch of the Enoch Pratt Free Library, 3rd Floor Auditorium, 400 Cathedral St. For more information, call 410-767-5252.

Other events can be found here.

In the meantime, the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention said Tuesday that the number of adults tested for HIV reached a record high in 2009. Last year, 82.9 million adults were tested, an increase of 11.4 million people since 2006, when the CDC recommended that testing become a routine part of medical care.

Though, the CDC says, 55 percent of adults, and 28.3 percent of adults at higher risk for HIV, have not been tested. The agency also estimates that 1.1 million adults are living with HIV and that as many as one in five of these individuals does not know that they are infected.

Have you been tested?