October 15 is the close of Hispanic Heritage month and it’s also National LatinX AIDS Awareness Day. According to the Latino Commission on AIDS, the HIV/AIDS cases in Latino communities have reached crisis levels. The number of Latinos with HIV/AIDS accounts for 24% of cases in the U.S and those numbers unfortunately keep climbing up.
Latinos count for 17% of the U.S. population, but they accounted for 24% of all HIV infections in 2014. For over 25 years the Commission has been trying to educate the Latino community, offer free HIV testing, but it’s just not enough. This is what we know so far:
- Every 54 minutes Latino MSM (Men Having Sex With Men) gets an HIV diagnosis
- 28% increase in HIV infection among Latino youth
- Although the CDC (Center For Disease Control and Prevention) reported a decrease in overall cases among Hispanics/Latinos from 2008-2013, infection rates among Hispanic/Latino MSM increased by 16%
- Barriers: Lack of insurance coverage, low education, language barriers, homophobia, unknown HIV status, lack of familiarity with healthcare system
According to Guillermo Chacon, President of the Latino Commission on AIDS, one of the most difficult things with HIV is the stigma associated with the epidemic and the level of homophobia, trans-phobia, and AIDS phobia that they face as a community. Hispanics and Latinos are late testers for HIV, which for many means that they’re living with the virus or the disease without even knowing.
What Can You Do?
There are many places where you can get tested for FREE and patients can receive their results in a matter of minutes.To find a testing site near you, use AAA’s testing locator, Get Tested; text your ZIP code to KNOWIT (566948); or call 1-800-CDC-INFO (232-4636). You can also use a home testing kit available in drugstores or online.
Protect yourself and your partner. Today, more tools than ever are available to prevent HIV. According to the CDC, you can:
- Use condoms the right way every time you have sex. Learn the right way to use a male condom or a female condom.
- Choose less risky sexual behaviors.
- Limit your number of sexual partners.
- Never share needles.
- Talk to your doctor about pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), taking medicine daily to prevent HIV infection, if you are at very high risk for HIV.
- Talk to your doctor about post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) if you think you may have been exposed to HIV within the last 3 days through sex, sharing needles and works, or a sexual assault.
Everyone ages 15 through 64 should get tested during their routine checkup. Men having sex with other men are particularly a high-risk group, but anyone who is having sex, unprotected sex, multiple sex partners, should definitely get tested as soon as possible.