National, State Reports: HIV/AIDS Continues to Take Tremendous Toll on New Yorkers
New York One of Five States Where Disease Remains Concentrated; More People Living with HIV/AIDS in New York than in any Other State
ALBANY, NY (Oct. 9, 2009) — State Health Commissioner Richard F. Daines, M.D., today announced the release of two reports that highlight the toll that HIV/AIDS continues to take on New Yorkers.
"The information released today reminds us that this epidemic, though nearly three decades old, remains a critical concern for New Yorkers," said Commissioner Daines. "We have more people living with HIV/AIDS than any other state, and the Department of Health (DOH) remains strongly committed to fighting the spread of this disease."
The New York State HIV/AIDS Surveillance Annual Report, which updates statistics related to the epidemic through December 2007, shows that more than 180,000 New Yorkers have been diagnosed with AIDS since the beginning of the epidemic.
"New York has had successes in HIV prevention, such as the near-elimination of transmission to newborns and the dramatic decrease of new infections among injection drug users," Commissioner Daines said, "but more needs to be done, especially concerning the spread of infection through sexual transmission – the predominant route of the virus."
An estimated 500 infants were infected during pregnancy or at birth at the height of the epidemic in the early 1990s, as compared to only eight infants in 2007. Additionally, during the 1990s, injection drug users represented as many as 52 percent of AIDS diagnoses, while in 2007, they were about 13 percent; and men who have sex with men and also inject drugs contributed less than 4 percent.
The Surveillance Report also notes that about 120,000 New Yorkers who were previously diagnosed with HIV/AIDS during the course of the epidemic were presumed living as of December 2007.
DOH's AIDS Institute report, HIV/AIDS in the United States: Disease Burden and Resource Allocation looks at the epidemic nationally and New York's place in it. Key findings show that HIV/AIDS remains concentrated in a few states, most notably New York, California, Texas, Florida and New Jersey. These five states are home to more than 35 percent of the United States population, but account for almost 55 percent of AIDS cases diagnosed through 2007 and nearly 52 percent of persons living with AIDS at the end of that year. The proportion of the nation's HIV cases concentrated in the top five states appears similar.
"This report is of critical importance because it demonstrates that New York is one of five states that represent the core of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in this country," said Humberto Cruz, Director of DOH's AIDS Institute. "With the number of persons living with HIV/AIDS in New York continuing to increase, the challenge today and in the future will be to maintain adequate resources to provide essential HIV/AIDS services for this population."
The heaviest burden remains in areas of the country where HIV/AIDS was initially concentrated. These areas also tend to have a greater proportion of infected persons living with AIDS as compared to those living with HIV infection that has not progressed to AIDS.
| State | Population | Cumulative AIDS Cases | Persons Living with AIDS | Persons Living with HIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York | 19,046,040 | 181,461 | 75,253 | 46,390 |
| California | 36,163,340 | 148,949 | 65,582 | Not Available |
| Florida | 18,029,900 | 109,524 | 48,059 | 39,686 |
| Texas | 23,406,070 | 72,828 | 34,940 | 26,605 |
| New Jersey | 8,595,440 | 50,964 | 17,671 | 17,612 |
| Total of Top 5 States | 105,240,790 | 563,726 | 241,505 | 130,293 |
| Rest of United States | 192,974,570 | 467,106 | 227,073 | 133,643 |
(Data: Kaiser State Health Facts. Persons Living with HIV data: federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; data based on 33 states.)
For a copy of the New York State HIV/AIDS Surveillance Annual Report, visit:
HIV/AIDS in the United States: Disease Burden and Resource Allocation, may be viewed at: