Facts about HIV/AIDS and Washington D.C.

A Look at HIV/AIDS in the U.S.

According to the 2005 CDC Annual Surveillance Report, by the end of 2005, more than 950,000 AIDS cases have been reported in the United States since the beginning of the epidemic, and more than 520,000 infected people have died. The rate of new HIV/AIDS cases among whites in 2005 was estimated at 10.4 cases per 100,000 population; this rate is 3.5 times lower than the rate among Hispanics (36.7 cases per 100,000 population) and 8.7 times lower than the rate among blacks (90.4 cases per 100,000 population). Between 2001 and 2005, the number of new cases of HIV/AIDS increased among those 15 to 29 years old.

2007 chart of hivaids in the usa

A Snapshot of HIV/AIDS in D.C.

  • According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,1 out of every 20 adults in Washington D.C. is HIV positive.
  • Washington D.C. has by far the highest rate of new AIDS cases in the United States.
  • It is over 10 times the national average – higher than New York City, Baltimore, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Detroit.
  • Source: DC Department of Health, 2007

The number of people who are diagnosed with AIDS each year is also more than 4 times the number of yearly deaths due to firearms in our city. Between 2001 and 2006, there were 7,947 new HIV/AIDS cases reported among D.C. residents. This would be enough to fill 45 D.C. metro cars. If we lined up side by side all of the people infected with HIV during these 5 years, the line would reach from the capitol building to the end of the Green Line. Nationally, among living AIDS cases, MSM sexual contact and IDU have been the leading modes of transmission. However, recent data show that heterosexual sexual contact is becoming one of the leading modes of transmission in the District. The percentage of reported HIV/AIDS cases from 2001 to 2006 among blacks (84.3%) was 9 times higher than whites (9.1%), and nearly 20 times that of Hispanics (4.5%).

HIV infection rates among District youth are rapidly increasing:

  • The number of new HIV infections among youth tripled for the period 2000 to 2005 compared to the previous five years.
  • Now, ten percent of all new HIV infections in our city are among young people aged 13 to 24.
  • Young people are not testing and keeping themselves safe.
  • A recent District-wide health survey shows that less than half of young people have been tested for HIV.
  • In MetroTeenAIDS surveys, almost one-half (41%) of all sexually active youth polled reported that they use a condom only “sometimes” or “never.”

Recent Youth Risk Behavior Surveys indicate a steady decline in the number of students who report receiving HIV/AIDS education in school, with only 78% of middle school students responding that they have ever gotten instruction on this vital topic. According to YRBS, 60% of DC’s high school students and 30% of middle school students have had sex and 10% of middle school students started before the age of 11. DC’s poor are much more affected by HIV than the middle & upper class. Fully, 26 times more people died prematurely from HIV/AIDS in our city’s poorer wards than in the richer ones. Between 2004 and 2006, there were only 4 premature deaths due to HIV/AIDS per 100,000 people in D.C.’s wealthiest ward 3, yet there were 104 premature deaths due to HIV/AIDS in Ward 8 (Southeast), D.C.’s poorest ward. The financial costs of HIV to our city are enormous. When the lifetime cost of HIV treatment is estimated at $619,000 per person, the money used to treat just the youth living with HIV in our city could fully fund the construction of the new baseball (Nationals) stadium.

Women at risk in the District of Columbia

  • The number of women living with AIDS in D.C. has increased 76% over the past six years.
  • Nine out of ten of these victims are black women (92%).
  • Although black females account for only 57.6% of the District population, they account for 92.3% of persons living with HIV/AIDS.
  • 61% of transmission among women is due to heterosexual sex, compared to 25% for men.
  • 87% of all women with HIV and 84% of all women with AIDS in the District are of child-bearing age.
  • Source: DC Department of Health, 2007

Women are more susceptible to HIV for biological reasons:

  • Women have more surface area than men for contamination.
  • A greater amount of semen is exchanged than vaginal fluid during intercourse.
  • Women have more untreated STDs, increasing their susceptibility to the virus.

Women are more susceptible to HIV/AIDS for social reason

  • Women suffer abusive relationship and are pressured to have sex more than men.
  • Women are more likely to be unemployed and can not afford health care.
  • Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2006
  • Photograph of Washington D.C.,courtesy and © Humberto Moreno

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