SAN FRANCISCO -- In observation of national Latino AIDS Awareness Day the San Francisco AIDS Foundation will expand its Spanish-language services Monday.

Specially trained Spanish-speaking volunteers will answer the California AIDS hot line, which the foundation operates. They will provide information about HIV testing and treatment, as well as emotional support to the state's Hispanic community, according to the foundation.

Education and prevention services provided for Spanish-speakers have not kept up with the rate of new infections, nor are services publicized among communities that need the information, according to the foundation.

A disproportionate number of HIV infections occur in the Latino community, Hispanics making up around 14 percent of the U.S. population, but comprising one-fifth of the countries HIV/AIDS cases.

"HIV deeply affects Spanish-speaking communities in the United States. But culturally and linguistically competent services are rarely adequate to meet the need," said Mark Cloutier, the foundation's executive director. "The AIDS Foundation is aggressively working to reach the Bay Area's large Spanish-speaking population with accurate information about HIV transmission, treatment and care."