Valerie Jarret recently wrote a post for the White House Blog addressing the subject of HIV in the Black Community.
She points out that "... according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1.1 million
people in the United States are living with HIV/AIDS and nearly 50,000
people become infected with HIV each year. In 2010, African-Americans accounted for only 14% of the U.S. population, but 44% of new HIV
infections. The majority (70%) of new HIV infections among
African-Americans occur among black men, and are concentrated among gay
men. In fact, young black gay and bisexual men who are the only group in
the black community where new HIV infections are increasing. Black
women represent 30% of new infections among African-Americans.
Transgender black women are also at risk for HIV with as many as one in
three in some studies diagnosed with HIV. And only 21% of black
Americans have a suppressed viral load, the key health marker for HIV
treatment."
Click here to read the full post.