March 17, 2009

AIDS Alliance Calls for Strategic Resource Investment in light of Soaring Rate of HIV/AIDS in the District of Columbia

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Washington, D.C.-  AIDS Alliance is deeply concerned with the findings of the 2008 epidemiology report conducted by the DC HIV/AIDS Administration that show at least three percent of District of Columbia residents are currently living with HIV/AIDS.  In the report released earlier this week, it became apparent that the HIV/AIDS rate in D.C has reached epidemic proportions for several sexual and racial/ethnic groups. 

           

Shannon L. Hader, DC’s HIV/AIDS Administration Director stated, “Our rates are higher than West Africa.  They’re on par with Uganda and parts of Kenya.”  In addition, she also stated that “we have every mode of transmission going up, all on the rise, and we have to deal with them.”

 

AIDS Alliance views this report as an opportunity to speak to the DC community to promote widespread testing and safe lifestyle practices. “With the number of HIV and AIDS cases in DC increasing by 22 percent from those reported in 2006, there is no time to waste in developing a strategic plan to decrease these shocking figures for the future,” said Alelia Munroe, AIDS Alliance Board President.

 

Encouraging others to know their serostatus is the first step to addressing the increase in HIV transmission.  Undiagnosed infections drive up medical care costs due to disease complications and ongoing transmission.  It is imperative that individuals are aware of their infections to increase quality of life and decrease costs.

 

The epidemiology report cautions us that the 3 percent is most assuredly higher because this only reports the findings of the D.C. residents who had been tested.  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 25 percent are not aware of their infection.  AIDS Alliance also reminds local and federal elected officials of the urgency to act in favor of increased HIV/AIDS resource allocation and strategic planning. 

 

AIDS Alliance is proud to be a National Partner in the NIAID HIV Vaccine Research Education Initiative (NHVREI) that aims to educate others about support for HIV vaccine research, and encourages participation in clinical trials.  Participation in vaccine research and in clinical trials has the capacity to reduce HIV infection in the District of Columbia and beyond in the search for a cure for AIDS.

 

It is especially important that high-risk populations protect themselves against HIV/AIDS transmission.  According to the DC HIV/AIDS Administration, more than four percent of African Americans in the city are known to have HIV, with almost two percent of Latinos and 1.4 percent of whites.  With these numbers in mind, AIDS Alliance is fully committed to aiding these racial/ethnic minority populations in working towards a world without AIDS.

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Founded in 1994, AACYF is a national non-profit organization whose mission is to advance the partnership between consumers and providers – we are the voice of women, children, youth and families living with and affected by HIV/AIDS.  AACYF works to enhance and expand access to quality, comprehensive, family-centered care to America’s children, youth and families affected by HIV/AIDS, as it represents the nation’s network of over 650 Ryan White Part D funded community-based organizations.  Part D programs serve over 53,000 HIV-affected women, children, youth and families through sites located in 35 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.