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new HIV infection The U.S. saw a slight decrease over the four-year period, but the nation is far from reaching its end goal EpidemicAccording to the most recent data published by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Tuesday.
The overwhelming majority of people who face a high risk from the virus are not accepted The main drug According to the CDC report, to prevent infection is due to deep racial disparities in access to treatment.
Infections fell 12% from 36,500 in 2017 to about 32,100 in 2021, the report said. According to the data, the decline was driven by a 34% drop in new HIV infections among 13- to 24-year-olds.
The United States has set a national goal of ending the HIV epidemic by reducing new infections by 90% by 2030.
But the nation is not on track to meet that goal if progress continues at the current pace, Dr. Jonathan Mermin, head of the CDC’s National Center for HIV and STD Prevention, told reporters on a call Tuesday.
Gay and bisexual men, as well as black and Hispanic communities, face a higher risk of infection because of racism, economic inequality, social marginalization and residential segregation, said Dr. Robin Neblet Fanfare, a senior official in the CDC’s HIV prevention efforts.
About two-thirds of new HIV infections reported in 2021 were among gay and bisexual men, with members of black and Hispanic communities making up the majority of new cases in these groups. About 40% of new infections in the gay community were among black men and 35% among Hispanic men, according to the data.
Among heterosexual women, 60% of new infections were among black women. Among heterosexual men, about 61% of new infections were among black men, according to the CDC. About 60% of injecting drug users diagnosed with HIV in 2021 were white.
More than half of the new infections, 52%, were reported in the South.
Severe discrimination in treatment
According to the CDC report, only 30% of the 1.2 million people at highest risk of HIV in 2021 took drugs to prevent infection called pre-exposure prophylaxis. That percentage of people taking PrEP has increased significantly, from 13% of the at-risk population in 2017.
US health officials want to increase the number of people taking PrEP to at least 50% of at-risk populations by 2025, but there are stark racial disparities in treatment that must be addressed to meet that goal.
Only 11% of black people and 21% of Hispanics at risk of HIV infection received PrEP in 2021. In contrast, 78% of white people took medication to prevent infection that same year.
The CDC is launching a campaign in the South that will help close the gap in PrEP coverage, focusing on black and Hispanic gay and bisexual men, Neblet Fanfare said.
Access to PrEP is threatened by a recent ruling by a federal judge in the US Northern District of Texas that struck down an Obamacare requirement that most private insurance plans cover the drugs. A federal appeals court stayed that ruling and temporarily reinstated coverage for these services.
Mermin declined to comment directly on the lawsuit but said he is concerned about any situation that makes it harder for people to get HIV prevention services.
President Joe Biden called on Congress to pass $850 million to support efforts to end the HIV epidemic in the United States, a 48% increase over 2023 funding for these efforts. Biden’s request includes $237 million for a national PrEP program.
According to the CDC, preventing HIV infection is even more complicated because 1 in 8 people infected with the virus do not know they are infected.
Health officials aim to have 95% of people diagnosed with HIV reduce their viral load to undetectable levels by 2025 with effective treatment. People diagnosed with HIV who are virally suppressed can lead healthy lives and will not transmit the virus to their sexual partners, according to the CDC.
Overall, 66% of people diagnosed with HIV suppressed the virus with treatment in 2021, but again stark racial disparities remain.
72% of white people diagnosed with HIV were virally suppressed, 62% of black people and 64% of Hispanics diagnosed with HIV were virally suppressed.
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