In light of the December 1 World AIDS Day, a newly released report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) notes that the HIV infection rate remains severe among gay and bisexual men, particularly men of color.
World AIDS Day is observed with a new theme every year and this year's theme “End inequalities. End AIDS” is aimed at WHO and its partner organisations highlighting the need for a special focus on reaching people left behind. It is calling on global leaders to rally to end inequalities that drive AIDS.
“About two-thirds of all new HIV infections in the U.S. occur in gay and bisexual men, which represents one of the largest disparities in existent public health,” Demetre Daskalakis, director of the CDC’s Division of HIV Prevention, said in a Tuesday CDC medical briefing about the report.
Gay and bi men accounted for 66 percent of all new HIV infections in 2019. Despite that, the number of new HIV infections among gay and bi men actually decreased by 8 percent over the last decade, according to a newly released CDC Vital Signs report, which dives deeply into issues surrounding a single disease.
While new HIV infections decreased most among white gay and bi men over the last decade, the number of infections remained mostly the same among Black and Hispanic/Latino gay and bi men.
Additionally, the report found that while 74 percent of HIV-positive white gay and bi men had achieved viral suppression through medications in 2019, only 62 percent of Black gay and bi men and 67 percent of Hispanic/Latino gay and bi men had achieved the same outcome through medications
Viral suppression makes it virtually impossible for HIV-positive people to transmit the virus to other sexual partners. But racial disparities also exist among gay and bi HIV-negative men taking medications to avoid contracting the disease in the first place.
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