GMHC's Statement on CDC's Report on Disproportionate HIV Diagnoses Among African Americans

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contacts:
Krishna Stone | 212.367.1016

On February 4, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released a report highlighting grave disparities in HIV diagnoses among African Americansand other groups. Despite representing just 13.6 percent of the U.S. population, African Americans account for half of the new HIV diagnoses in adolescents and adults from 2005 to 2008.  Both African American men and women had much higher rates of infection than other groups.  However, the number of HIV diagnoses among African American males increased every year over this time period.  At about 61 percent, transmission among men was primarily through male to male sexual contact.  Also disturbing, young black men 13-24 years old accounted for almost a third of new diagnoses among African American men.

"Clearly African Americans face a serious uphill battle in the fight against HIV/AIDS," said Marjorie J. Hill Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer of GMHC.  "We need to pay more attention to constructive HIV prevention messages that are tailored to this already-disenfranchised segment of our population."

GMHC will continue to develop and advocate for innovative and expanded HIV prevention approaches that:

• Address public health issues that contribute to people's heightened vulnerability to HIV infection such as homophobia, poverty, racism and sexism;
• Promote family support which strengthens the resiliency within women, men and youth to better negotiate safer sex practices;
• Support gay-affirming interventions and activities in schools, such as gay-straight alliances and anti-bullying curricula;
• Advocate for age-appropriate sex education programs that are implemented and evaluated in schools;
• Offer more HIV testing in nontraditional sites such as churches and street fairs; and
• Provide social marketing messages addressing this hard hit population.

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GMHC is a not-for-profit, volunteer-supported and community-based organization committed to national leadership in the fight against AIDS.  We provide prevention and care services to men, women and families that are living with, or affected by, HIV/AIDS in New York City.  We advocate for scientific, evidence-based public health solutions for hundreds of thousands worldwide.