HIV

Goal

Prevent human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and its related illness and death.


Overview

The HIV epidemic in the United States continues to be a major public health crisis. An estimated 1.1 million Americans are living with HIV, and 1 out of 5 people with HIV do not know they have it.1 HIV continues to spread, leading to about 56,000 new HIV infections each year.2

In 2010, the White House released a National HIV/AIDS Strategy. The strategy includes 3 primary goals:

  1. Reducing the number of people who become infected with HIV.
  2. Increasing access to care and improving health outcomes for people living with HIV.
  3. Reducing HIV-related health disparities.

Why is HIV Important?

HIV is a preventable disease. Effective HIV prevention interventions have been proven to reduce HIV transmission. People who get tested for HIV and learn that they are infected can make significant behavior changes to improve their health and reduce the risk of transmitting HIV to their sex or drug-using partners. More than 50 percent of new HIV infections3 occur as a result of the 21 percent of people who have HIV but do not know it.

Additional Resources

HP2020's National Objectives for HIV
HHDW Reports on HIV


References

  1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. HIV prevalence estimates—United States, 2006. MMWR. 2008;57(39):1073-76.
  2. Hall HI, Song R, Rhodes P, et al. Estimation of HIV incidence in the United States. JAMA. 2008;300(5):520-9.
  3. Marks G, Crepaz N, Janssen RS, et al. Estimating sexual transmission of HIV from persons aware and unaware that they are infected with the virus in the USA. AIDS. 2006;20(10):1447-50.