May 5, 2009

Study: Blacks and Latinos Worry More Than Whites About HIV

Contracting HIV is a bigger concern among African Americans and Latinos than whites, according to a new study funded by the Kaiser Family Foundation as reported by The St. Louis American.

According to the report, when asked, “Bearing in mind the different ways people can be infected with HIV, how concerned are you personally about becoming infected with HIV?” Thirty-eight percent of African-American and 25 percent of Latino respondents replied that they were “very concerned.” Six percent of whites gave the same answer. Additionally, 10 percent of whites polled said they feel that HIV/AIDS is a more urgent health problem than it was a few years ago, compared with 40 percent of African Americans and 35 percent of Latinos.

While African Americans make up 12 percent of the U.S. population, they represent about half of all new HIV/AIDS cases, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Recently, in cooperation with 14 nationally known African-American groups, officials from the White House and the CDC announced a five-year initiative titled “Act Against AIDS” to focus on education, prevention and treatment among the black population.

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