Straight Platform Politics

District Of Columbia HIV/AIDS Epidemic – Part 11

Behavioral Surveillance: Findings continued

The District’s HIV/AIDS Behavioral Surveillance (HBS) Summary Report 2008 also looked at the risk behavior of concurrency – having more than one sexual partner. The HBS Report found that having more than one sexual partner was common, even for people with primary or stable relationships.

The vast majority of participants (74.2%) reported that their most recent partner was a main partner. But 57.9% also reported that they had 2 or more sexual partners in the last 12 months and 45.9% believed their last sex partner definitely or probably had sex with someone else during the past 12 months of the relationship.  See Part 7

This means that condom use is vital even in main relationships. The Report states, “Concurrency has been shown in many studies in the United States and abroad to be a key factor in the emergence of heterosexual HIV epidemics.”

The District’s intervention and prevention strategies must include the routine offering of HIV testing to all who present themselves for health care. This is especially true for Black females since they are at great risk of being infected even if they do not manifest common risk factors.

Black females, Blacks, HBS-HET, HIV epidemic, HIV infection rates, HIV mode of transmission, HIV testing, HIV/AIDS, HIV/AIDS epidemic, HIV/AIDS intervention strategy, HIV/AIDS rates, HIV/AIDS statistics, common risk factors, concurrency, condom use, early onset of sexual activity, early sexual debut, epidemic, females at risk, free condoms, heterosexual HIV epidemics, heterosexual contact, heterosexual contact transmission, heterosexuals, intervention and prevention strategies, main partner, promote-prevent-protect, relationships, risk behavior, risk behaviors, risk factors, risky behavior, risky sexual behavior, sex partners, sexual relationships, stable sexual relationships

District Of Columbia HIV/AIDS Epidemic – Part 7

The Statistics by Race and Gender

The 2008 Update describes the HIV/AIDS epidemic now challenging the District of Columbia. See Part 1 See Part 4

The Update reports that the number of male adults and adolescents over the age of 13 (A/A) in the District is 236,323. See Part 5 The percentages of the total male A/A population by race are: 49.7% Black, 36.5% White, 9.0% Hispanic, and 4.7% other. Of the 10,835 male A/A living with HIV/AIDS, 70.5% are Black, 21.1% White, 6.0% Hispanic, and 2.5% other.  See Part 6

The percentage of black male A/A living with HIV/AIDS is 6.5% of all black male A/A in the District. This is the highest percent with respect to race and gender. It is 6.5 times higher than the established 1% epidemic threshold. See Part 3

The percentages of the total female A/A population (270,399) by race are: 55.6% Black, 32.3% White, 7.1% Hispanic, and 5.0% other. Of the 4,285 female A/A living with HIV/AIDS, 91.1% are Black, 3.2% White, 3.1% Hispanic, and 2.6% other.

The percentage of white female A/A living with HIV/AIDS is 0.16% of all white female A/A in the District. This is the lowest percent and is 6.25 times lower than the established 1% epidemic threshold.

Blacks, District of Columbia, HIV by race, HIV cases by gender, HIV epidemic, HIV infection rates, HIV/AIDS, HIV/AIDS epidemic, HIV/AIDS percentages, HIV/AIDS rate 1%, HIV/AIDS rates, HIV/AIDS statistics, Hispanics, Update 2008, Washington D.C., Whites, epidemic, homosexuals

District Of Columbia HIV/AIDS Epidemic – Part 6

The Statistics by Race

The District of Columbia’s HIV/AIDS 2008 Update was released in March and includes many staggering facts and conclusions on the District’s current epidemic.

The Update reports the District’s total population by race as being 52.9% Black, 34.2% White, 8.0% Hispanic, and 4.9% other. These are adults and adolescents over the age of 13 (A/A). The percentages of A/A living with HIV/AIDS by race are: 4.3% Black, 1.9% Hispanic, 1.5% other, and 1.4% White.

There are 15,120 A/A living with HIV/AIDS. The percentages of this group by race are: 76.3% Black, 16.0% White, 5.2% Hispanic, and 2.5% other. Blacks comprise a little over half of the total A/A population of the District, but comprise ¾ of the A/A population living with HIV/AIDS.

The mode of transmission of HIV differs by race. Men-having-sex-with-men (MSM) is the greatest mode for white males: 82.4%. The greatest modes for black males are: 42.1% MSM, 20.0% heterosexual contact, and 19.7% injection drug user (IDU). Greatest modes for Hispanic males are: 59.3% MSM and 19.7% heterosexual contact.

Heterosexual contact is the greatest mode for females: Hispanic 70.1%, Black 58.1%, and 51.1% White.

Blacks, District of Columbia, HIV by race, HIV epidemic, HIV infection rates, HIV mode of transmission, HIV/AIDS, HIV/AIDS epidemic, HIV/AIDS rate 1%, HIV/AIDS rate 3%, Hispanics, IDU, MSM, The District of Columbia, Washington D.C., Whites, epidemic, females at risk, heterosexual contact, heterosexual contact transmission, homosexuals, injection drug user, men having sex with men, mode of transmission, non-homosexual men, risky behavior, risky sexual behavior, unprotected sex

District Of Columbia HIV/AIDS Epidemic – Part 5

The Statistics by Gender

The District of Columbia HIV/AIDS Epidemiology Update 2008 verifies that the District is in the midst of a “modern HIV/AIDS epidemic.” See Part 1

The Update reports that the District’s total population of adults and adolescents over the age of 13 (A/A) is 506,722. There are 15,120 A/A living with HIV/AIDS, which is 3% of the total A/A population. See Part 3

The gender percentages of the total A/A population are 46.6% male and 53.4% female. However, even though there are fewer males, they have an HIV/AIDS infection rate almost 3 times higher than females: 4.6% to 1.6%.

The male-to-female comparison within the 15,120 population is startling: 71.7% male to 28.3% female. This reflects Update results showing that men-having-sex-with-men is the leading mode of disease transmission. This includes not only homosexuals but also non-homosexual men engaging in risky sexual behavior.

Unfortunately, data also show that heterosexual contact as a mode of disease transmission is increasing. This puts the female population of the District at great risk. Sadly, many of them may already be infected and not even know it.

District of Columbia, HIV care, HIV cases by gender, HIV epidemic, HIV infection rates, HIV mode of transmission, HIV/AIDS, HIV/AIDS epidemic, HIV/AIDS rate 1%, HIV/AIDS rate 3%, HIV/AIDS rates, HIV/AIDS statistics, MSM, The District of Columbia, Update 2008, Washington D.C., epidemic, females at risk, heterosexual contact, heterosexual contact transmission, homosexuals, men having sex with men, mode of transmission, non-homosexual men, risky behavior, risky sexual behavior, unprotected sex

District Of Columbia HIV/AIDS Epidemic – Part 4

The Statistics by Neighborhood

The District’s HIV/AIDS Update See Part 1 also sorted the data by neighborhood wards. Among all residents of the District that are adults and adolescents over the age of 13 (A/A), the rates of those living with HIV/AIDS show that the epidemic is widespread.

UNAIDS and CDC define an HIV epidemic as generalized and severe when the overall percentage exceeds 1%. See Part 3 There are eight District wards and seven have rates ranging from 1.7-2.8%.

Ward 3 has the lowest number of HIV/AIDS cases (267) and the lowest rate of infection (0.3%) and the least number of publicly funded HIV/AIDS service providers (2).

There are two noteworthy observations about the District made in the 2008 Update. One is that persons engaging in any type of unprotected sex are at risk for becoming infected. The other is that, in recent years, trends in new AIDS cases and trends in new HIV (not AIDS) cases suggest that heterosexual contact is slowly emerging as the leading mode of transmission.

CDC, District of Columbia, HIV care, HIV medication, HIV mode of transmission, HIV testing, HIV/AIDS, HIV/AIDS epidemic, HIV/AIDS intervention strategy, HIV/AIDS prevention strategy, HIV/AIDS rate 1%, HIV/AIDS rate 3%, HIV/AIDS rates, HIV/AIDS statistics, The District of Columbia, UNAIDS, Update 2008, Washington D.C., epidemic, free condoms, heterosexual contact, heterosexual contact transmission, needle exchange, promote-prevent-protect, unprotected sex

District Of Columbia HIV/AIDS Epidemic – Part 3

The Statistics by Age

The District’s HIV/AIDS Update See Part 1 See Part 2 includes 16 tables, 37 figures, 4 maps, and a huge amount of discouraging data.

The United Nations Joint Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) define an HIV epidemic as generalized and severe when the overall percentage exceeds 1%. In the District 3% of the population 13 years old and older are living with HIV/AIDS.

Among all residents that are adults and adolescents over the age of 13 (A/A), the age range most impacted is the 40-49 year olds with 7.2% of that age range living with HIV/AIDS. The 50-59 year olds are next with 5.2% and the 30-39 year olds with 3.4%. The District’s 13-19 year olds are the only age group under the 1% threshold; it is 0.1%.

Of the 15,120 A/A living with HIV/AIDS, 37.9% are 40-49 years old, 24.5% are 50-59, and 21.1% are 30-39. The 20-29 year olds and the over 60 group are each 8.1%. The 13-19 year olds are 0.4%.

Unfortunately, even if the District curtails the number of new cases of infection, the number of adults living with HIV/AIDS will remain high for years to come.

CDC, HIV care, HIV medication, HIV testing, HIV/AIDS, HIV/AIDS epidemic, HIV/AIDS intervention strategy, HIV/AIDS prevention strategy, HIV/AIDS rate 1%, HIV/AIDS rate 3%, HIV/AIDS rates, HIV/AIDS statistics, The District of Columbia, UNAIDS, United Nations, Update 2008, Washington D.C., epidemic, needle exchange, promote-prevent-protect

District Of Columbia HIV/AIDS Epidemic – Part 2

The Strategy continued

The District of Columbia’s 2008 HIV/AIDS Update was released in March 2009. See Part 1 It updates the 2007 HIV/AIDS annual report. The District’s Promote-Prevent-Protect (PPP) intervention and prevention strategy had good results. However, District HIV/AIDS statistics remain grim.

At the end of 2007, there were 15,120 residents living with HIV/AIDS. This is 3% of the District’s population 13 years old and older and a 22% increase in the number of adults and adolescents living with HIV/AIDS since the end of 2006.

The District’s publicly funded HIV testing increased 70% from 2007 to 2008; the number of youth tested doubled from 10,000 to 20,000. The District also increased intervention funding so as to reach more residents, distributed 1.5 million free condoms, and doubled the number of needles exchanged to 190,000.

Through its PPP strategy, the District also increased the number of people receiving free HIV medications, decreased the number of babies born with HIV, and increased the number of people receiving early HIV care.

Hopefully, this aggressive and expensive strategy will stop or at least reduce the spread of HIV in the District.

District of Columbia, HIV care, HIV medication, HIV testing, HIV/AIDS, HIV/AIDS epidemic, HIV/AIDS intervention strategy, HIV/AIDS prevention strategy, HIV/AIDS rates, HIV/AIDS statistics, Update 2008, Washington D.C., epidemic, free condoms, needle exchange, promote-prevent-protect

District Of Columbia HIV/AIDS Epidemic – Part 1

The Strategy

The District of Columbia HIV/AIDS Epidemiology Update 2008 was released in March of this year. The District has the highest rates of HIV/AIDS in the United States and the epidemic is affecting every District neighborhood and every population group.

District leaders have developed a Promote-Prevent-Protect (PPP) strategy to fight against this deadly disease. Their overall goal is to reduce new transmissions of HIV and new diagnoses of AIDS.

Unfortunately, over 70 percent of District residents living with HIV/AIDS are currently 40 years old and over. This group will continue to increase in number and will continue to age even with an effective HIV intervention and prevention strategy. District leaders are aware of the substantial impact this group is having and will continue to have on its health care system.

The Update stated, “ 2008 was a remarkable year where the word “change” has taken on new meaning and power. It resulted in a change of direction for the country and it can change the direction of the District’s HIV/AIDS epidemic.”

Let’s hope the change in the epidemic goes better than the change the country is currently experiencing.

District of Columbia, HIV/AIDS, HIV/AIDS epidemic, HIV/AIDS rates, Update 2008, Washington D.C., epidemic, promote-prevent-protect