National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness and Information
Day Message February 7th is National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness & Information Day. This is a time to strengthen our commitment and to remember all the lives lost to this devastating global epidemic. Approximately 900,000 Americans are living with HIV/AIDS, and some 40,000 are newly infected with HIV every year. A disproportionate number of those are from communities of color. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 886,575 AIDS cases have been reported since the beginning of the epidemic in 1981 through December 2002. Of these, black individuals accounted for 52.3 percent of AIDS-related deaths and 50.2 percent of AIDS cases, even though African Americans make up only 12 percent of the population. In 2002, HIV/AIDS was one of the top three leading causes of death for Black women and men ages 2544. These numbers are not just statisticsthey represent real people. In recognition of National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness & Information
Day, the Department of Health and Human Services has launched this comprehensive
National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness & Information Day Web site, which
provides the latest information on prevention, testing, treatment, and
vaccine research. NBHAAD was created by the Community Capacity Building Coalition, a group composed of national organizations from across the country funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. To learn about the coalition, visit the History page.
Statements Regarding
National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness and Information Day on February 7, 2004
Secretary Tommy G. Thompson, Department of Health & Human Services Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, Director, NIAID |
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