East China's Shandong Province is planning to offer free HIV/AIDS tests to people who have been paid to give blood to help prevent the spread of the killer disease.

The province recorded a total of 363 HIV/AIDS patients up until September 20th this year, China Radio International reported Monday.

Statistics show that number is increasing because many people contracted the virus when donating blood in the early 1990s.

The provincial health department says that they are planning to offer a free HIV/AIDS test to those people so as to control the spread of the virus.

(CRI October 18, 2004)