For Valentine’s Day: A Bouquet, Chocolates and an AIDS Test : Health: Sponsors hope at least 10,000 will take part in a low-cost, anonymous program to ease minds of loved ones.

Forget boxer shorts with hearts on them.

Give your honey peace of mind for Valentine’s Day. Get tested for HIV.

That’s the message of five local sponsors who hope Southern Californians will turn out by the thousands Feb. 8 and Feb. 15 for low-cost, anonymous testing for HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.

Dean Licitra of AIDS Project Los Angeles, one of the five, said the organizers hope to test at least 10,000 people. Licitra said he believes the mass screening is the most ambitious ever undertaken in California.

The tests will be given from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at Century City Hospital and USC University Hospital in Los Angeles, and in the office of Dr. Stephen Gabin, Suite 317 of the Atlantic Medical Building, 701 East 28th St., in Long Beach. Test results will be available a week later at the same sites.

Volunteers will draw blood and provide counseling for those being tested while wearing T-shirts that show Cupid sporting both a bow and arrow and a Band-Aid on his arm. The theme of the testing program is emblazoned on the shirts: “Do It for Those You Love.”

In addition to AIDS Project L.A., sponsors of the program are Century City Hospital, USC University Hospital, KTTV/Fox 11 and SmithKline Beecham Clinical Laboratories.

The organizers said Valentine’s Day, the traditional holiday of lovers, is an ideal occasion for a mass screening for the virus that causes the deadly disease, which is often sexually transmitted.

Dr. Tom Grove of SmithKline Beecham said that knowing whether you have been infected is crucial in controlling the spread of the disease. “Since there is no cure, we need to work on prevention,” said Grove, who helped develop the confirmatory test for exposure to the virus.

The massive screening has several unusual features, organizers said. Because of sponsors’ donations, the test will cost $13, much less than the $75 to $90 it routinely costs elsewhere. Those who are tested must pay in cash, in part to protect their anonymity.

Those who are tested will not be asked to give their names or other personal information. They will be given a number, which will be put on their blood sample and which they will need to get test results. There will also be individual counseling before the test is given and when results are reported.

Licitra said the organizers expect 4% to 5% of the tests to show exposure to HIV. A confirmatory test will automatically be done if the initial test is positive. Licitra said the fact that the confirmatory test will be done before an individual comes back will eliminate a second anxious period of waiting for results, typical among people who have been tested.

Anyone who is especially anxious for test results may call the Southern California AIDS information hot line at 1-800-922-AIDS.

At the testing sites, trained counselors will meet individually with those who are about to be tested to answer questions, allay anxieties and discuss AIDS prevention. Counselors will also meet with each individual when results are given. AIDS Project L.A. will distribute information on resources available for people with AIDS and those infected with the virus.

“We want people to know that whichever way this goes, there’s another step and there are resources out there for you,” Licitra said.

Anyone who is sexually active or who has shared intravenous drugs or paraphernalia should have the test, organizers said.

Although the thrust of the screening’s campaign is to get tested to protect sexual partners and others, Licitra said the best reason to get tested is because it allows those who are infected to begin treatment early.

“There are now real treatment options for people,” he said. “If you can do something before you get sick the first time, you have a real possibility of prolonging life and maintaining its quality.

“I absolutely think the most important reason to do this is for yourself. But if the idea of doing it for someone else gets you into test site, I’m all for it.”

In addition to the Los Angeles area, tests will be given in Anaheim Hills and Riverside.

For detailed information on the testing, call 1-800-627-TEST. The message is available in English and Spanish.