OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - The Oklahoma State Department of Health is targeting the African-American community for AIDS testing and awareness.

According to the Health Department, African Americans have the highest rate of new HIV/AIDS cases in the state, with a rate nearly five times higher than for other racial or ethnic groups. Of the nearly 5,000 Oklahomans with HIV/AIDS, nearly 1,200 are African Americans.

Jan Fox is chief of the Health Department's HIV and Sexually Transmitted Disease Service. Fox calls the figures a "troubling disparity."

The department is observing National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day on Feb. 7 and is encouraging people to get tested and seek treatment. Free, confidential screenings are scheduled in Tulsa that day, and the agency is touting testing sites across the state.