New CDC Data Show Alarming Increase in HIV Cases

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
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Krishna Stone | 212.367.1016

New York, NY/March 27, 2008 — Reported new HIV infections in the United States increased by nearly half in 2006 (48%), according to data made public by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) earlier this week. The CDC reported 52,878 new HIV infections in 45 states and the District of Columbia for 2006. In 2005, CDC reported only 35,537 new infections in 38 states and the District of Columbia.

The newly released CDC data do not appear to be the much-awaited data based on new estimation methods and discussed at the CDC’s HIV Prevention Conference in December 2007.

"New CDC data showing a 48% higher incidence of new HIV/AIDS diagnoses in 2006 compared with 2005 are just the latest piece of bad news about the sexual health of the American people," said Marjorie J. Hill, PhD, Chief Executive Officer of Gay Men’s Health Crisis (GMHC). "While there are seven additional states reporting in 2006, this does not account for the 48% jump in new diagnoses. These devastating numbers reinforce what we have known for quite some time: that HIV prevention is under-funded and hamstrung by ideological restrictions that force us to fight this epidemic with one hand tied behind our back."

The seven new states for which CDC is reporting HIV data for the first time in 2006 are: California, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Oregon, Rhode Island, and Washington.

In recent months, government data have shown increases in HIV infections among young men who have sex with men (MSM) and young women in New York City, especially young people of color. Nationally, HIV is up for MSM and dramatically up among Black MSM. Teen pregnancy rates have also increased for the first time since the early 1990s. Earlier this month, the CDC reported that one quarter of teenage females have a sexually transmitted infection, with nearly half of Black teenage females in the study infected.

GMHC has fought to redirect hundreds of millions in federal funding from failed abstinence-only-until-marriage education to comprehensive sex education. GMHC and other groups have also pushed for increased prevention funding at CDC. Under the Bush-Cheney administration, funding for prevention at CDC has dropped 19% in real dollar terms, even as the domestic AIDS epidemic has worsened.

"These alarming new statistics reinforce the need for a National AIDS Strategy and a renewed focus on domestic HIV prevention," said Dr. Hill.

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GMHC is the world’s first and leading provider of HIV/AIDS prevention, care and advocacy. Building on decades of dedication and expertise, we understand the reality of HIV/AIDS and empower a healthy life for all.