HOW HIV.GOV/CDC OBSERVES NATIONAL GAY MEN'S HIV/AIDS AWARENESS DAY (MONKEYPOX RESOURCES)! (1809 hits)
For Immediate Release From HIV.Gov!
CDC Observes National Gay Men’s HIV/AIDS Awareness Day
Content From: Robyn Neblett Fanfair MD, MPH, Captain, USPHS, Acting Director, Division of HIV Prevention, National Center for HIV, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , and Jonathan Mermin MD, MPH, RADM and Assistant Surgeon General, USPHS, Director, National Center for HIV, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
September 27 is National Gay Men’s HIV/AIDS Awareness Day (NGMHAAD) https://www.cdc.gov/hiv/library/awareness/... a day to help end HIV stigma and encourage HIV testing, prevention, and treatment among gay, bis*xual, and other men who have s*x with men. As we celebrate the progress we have made in HIV prevention and treatment among gay and bis*xual men, we must also acknowledge the challenges we still face. Racism, poverty, stigma, and homophobia serve as barriers to care and prevention, and continue to drive inequities that cause gay and bis*xual men—particularly Black/African American and Hispanic/Latino men—to be overrepresented in the HIV epidemic.
This NGMHAAD, we acknowledge the additional public health challenges and continued stigma that gay and bis*xual men face. Although we are still learning about monkeypox amid the current outbreak, we are seeing similar patterns of inequity, with Hispanic/Latino and Black/African American gay and bis*xual men representing the majority of people with monkeypox. https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/71/wr/mm7... Recently, CDC released a Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report showing that people with HIV and with a recent history of other s*xually transmitted diseases (STDs) are disproportionately affected by monkeypox. https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/71/wr/mm7... This represents an important opportunity to use existing HIV and STD prevention and care models and resources to ensure equitable access to monkeypox information and services among gay and bis*xual men, people with HIV, and people who experience increased incidence of STDs. Learn more about CDC’s efforts to reduce stigma in monkeypox communication and community engagement. https://www.cdc.gov/poxvirus/monkeypox/res...
Despite ongoing challenges, the efforts of public health and community advocates are making a difference in lowering new HIV infections among gay and bis*xual men. From 2015 to 2019, the number of estimated new HIV infections among gay and bis*xual men in the United States decreased from 26,900 to 24,500. https://www.cdc.gov/hiv/group/msm/msm-cont... Nonetheless, gay and bis*xual men accounted for 70% of the total 34,800 estimated new HIV infections in the United States in 2019. Across the country, some communities—specifically Black/African American gay and bis*xual men https://www.cdc.gov/hiv/group/bmsm/inciden... and Hispanic/Latino gay and bis*xual men—are disproportionately affected by HIV. In 2019, Black/African American gay and bis*xual men accounted for 26% https://www.cdc.gov/hiv/group/bmsm/inciden... and Hispanic/Latino gay and bis*xual men accounted for 24% of estimated new HIV infections https://www.cdc.gov/hiv/group/gay-bis*xual... As public health and community advocates, we must continue our work to address these racial and ethnic disparities.
One of the most effective tools we have to address ongoing challenges in HIV prevention is pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) https://www.cdc.gov/hiv/pdf/library/report... Unfortunately, not everyone who can benefit from PrEP has access to it. Current PrEP data reflect racial and regional disparities driven by structural challenges such as stigma, racism, and mistrust in the health care system. Among Black/African American people who could benefit from PrEP, only 11% were prescribed PrEP in 2021, followed by 20% of Hispanic/Latino people and 80% of White people. In the South in 2020, only three states https://www.cdc.gov/hiv/statistics/overvie... were at least halfway to the Ending the HIV Epidemic in the U.S. goal of 50% PrEP coverage by 2025. https://www.cdc.gov/endhiv/prevent.html
CDC monitors HIV surveillance data to identify communities with rapid HIV transmission and implement tailored interventions that address these communities’ needs. A new Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report analyzed data from 38 HIV clusters in 2018-2019 that had grown to more than 25 people by the end of 2021. Of those 38 clusters, 29 were primarily among gay and bis*xual men, and these clusters also reflected racial and ethnic disparities.
The persistence of racial, ethnic, and regional HIV disparities reflects the effects of stigma, homophobia, racism, and discrimination that gay and bis*xual men continue to face and shows us where we need to scale up treatment and prevention services. Identifying these gaps through cluster detection and response, a pillar of the Ending the HIV Epidemic in the U.S. initiative, allows CDC to deploy tailored interventions to those areas to improve health outcomes and reduce disparities and health inequities, a primary goal of the 2022-2025 National HIV/AIDS Strategy. https://www.hiv.gov/federal-response/natio... Additionally, CDC continues to fund and support health departments and community-based organizations to develop and implement tailored HIV prevention programs for gay and bis*xual men, including Black/African American gay and bis*xual men and Hispanic/Latino gay and bis*xual men.
As we work together toward ending the HIV epidemic, partners like you are essential at every step of the process—from improving the reach of HIV prevention education, to reducing barriers to HIV prevention services like PrEP, and providing stigma-free care for people with HIV. Help us raise awareness about HIV testing, prevention, and treatment for gay and bis*xual men by downloading and sharing resources from CDC’s Let’s Stop HIV Together campaign. https://www.cdc.gov/stophivtogether/librar... and https://www.cdc.gov/stophivtogether/index.... If you are a health care provider, you can download HIV testing, prevention, and care materials https://www.cdc.gov/poxvirus/monkeypox/pre... to better serve gay and bis*xual men. https://www.cdc.gov/hiv/clinicians/materia... You can also share social media content from CDC’s digital toolkit using the #NGMHAAD and #StopHIVTogether hashtags. https://www.cdc.gov/hiv/library/awareness/...
Together, we can build on the progress we have made and improve the quality of life and s*xual health among gay and bis*xual men, and all communities affected by HIV and monkeypox.
