CDC’s New AIDS Data Reflected in TN

The Centers for Disease Control released new data this week showing a 40-percent increase in new HIV/AIDS cases. But recent trends were the same–African Americans accounted for nearly half of all new infections.

That statistic is worrying researchers at Nashville’s Meharry Medical College. Meharry is one of the leading research institutions studying inequalities in access to health care–and in how diseases affect racial groups differently.

In the last few years, African Americans have accounted for 45-percent of new infections in Middle Tennessee. Researcher Donald Alcendor says the CDC data shows that a renewed focus on education is needed.

“The number that is most shocking to me is that one in four persons don’t know they’re infected with HIV. And that is a startling statistic. Another one is that the majority of those that are infected are less than 30 years of age.”

In addition to lack of education, Alcendor says the South faces the continued problem of poverty, which makes many people less likely to seek expensive drugs or treatment.

According to the CDC’s data, 56,000 new cases were reported in 2006, up from 40,000 for the last few years before that.Male to Male sexual contact accounted for 53-percent of all new cases.

The CDC says the numbers are increasing because methods measuring how many people contract the virus are becoming more precise. Nashville CARES, a local agency supporting those living with AIDS, estimates there are about 400-new infections in Middle Tennessee every year.