Report Reveals Black Americans Most Burdened with HIV

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) just released the latest issue of the HIV Surveillance Supplemental Report which monitors HIV infection rates across America to an astounding degree of detail. HIV infection rates across populations look generally promising overall, while the rate of new infections in men who have sex with men (MSM) stubbornly remained steady as ever, and even increased among certain groups of young MSM.

Annual HIV infections decreased nearly eight percent among the overall U.S. population from 2010 to 2015, or more specifically, HIV infections decreased from 41,800 in 2010 to 38,500 in 2015 using the best educated estimates. The data was collected as part of the National HIV Surveillance System (NHSS).

In the report, prevalence defines the annual total number of people living with HIV and incidence defines the annual number of new infections. An infographic breaks down and simplifies some of the most important highlights of the report.

With 68 percent of all HIV infections among MSM, it’s a problem that affects the gay community whether we like or not, and it isn’t going anywhere – anytime soon. Annual infections among all MSM groups, however, remained stable, and MSM of color remain particularly burdened with new HIV cases.

Researchers found a 22 percent increase among Hispanic/Latino MSM annual infections. Black or African-Americans accounted for 42 percent of all new HIV infections, and of that 42 percent, 60 percent practice MSM sex, and out of the African-Americans who have who practice MSM sex, nearly 80 percent are under the age of 35, with their whole life ahead of them.

Young adult Americans are increasingly more susceptible to the virus, with a 19 percent increase among all 25–34 year olds. “The annual number of HIV infections in 2015, compared with 2010, decreased among persons aged 13–24, 35–44, and 45–54 but increased among persons aged 25–34,” the report highlighted. “The number of infections in 2010 and 2015 remained stable among persons aged ≥55 years. In 2015, the rate was highest for persons aged 25–34 (31.3), followed by the rate for persons aged 13– 24 years (18.3)”

MSM HIV rates haven’t budged a bit, but neither have injection drug use rates, thanks to America’s ongoing opioid epidemic. “The annual number of infections in 2010 and 2015 remained stable among males with infection attributed to male-to-male sexual contact, among males with infection attributed to male-to-male sexual contact and injection drug use, and among males and females with infection attributed to injection drug use. In 2015, the largest percentages of HIV infections were attributed to male-to-male sexual contact (68.1% overall and 82.9% among males).”

The report also identifies swollen infection rates across Southern states, accounting for a whopping 51 percent of annual HIV infections, and accounting for 46 percent of people living with HIV, despite accounting for only 38 percent of the entire U.S. population. In addition, 51 percent of undiagnosed HIV infections hail from the South.

What this report confirms is that MSM are, predictably, a significant portion of all HIV infections. That means that HIV cannot be controlled without the

The report is published by the Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention, National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention at the CDC.

“The primary national HIV prevention goal is to reduce the annual number of HIV infections,” the report reads. By monitoring the rates of HIV infections, you can get an overall temperature of where America is headed in terms of HIV prevention and treatment.