HIV and Black/African American People in the U.S. | Fact Sheets | Newsroom | NCHHSTP

The donut graph shows the estimated 34,800 people with new HIV infections in the U.S., by race and ethnicity, in 2019

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A growing body of research shows that centuries of racism and discrimination in this country have had a profound negative impact on communities of color. The impact is pervasive and deeply embedded in society—affecting where one lives, learns, works, worships, and plays and creating inequities in access to housing, quality education, wealth, employment, and a range of other social and economic benefits. These conditions—often referred to as social determinants of health—are key drivers of health inequities, causing people within some populations to experience greater risk for poor health outcomes.

With effective prevention and treatment tools at our disposal, the nation has a decades-in-the-making opportunity to end the domestic HIV epidemic and eliminate disparities in HIV prevention and care. CDC is working with partners on many fronts—including the federal Ending the HIV Epidemic in the U.S. (EHE) initiative—to deliver and scale up key, science-based HIV treatment and prevention strategies in innovative ways that reach populations equitably.

COVID-19 and HIV

The COVID-19 pandemic in the U.S. led to disruptions in HIV testing and access to clinical services throughout 2020. Although the full impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on HIV in the U.S. will not be known for some time, recent CDC data have shown concerning setbacks to HIV prevention, including sharp declines in HIV testing and diagnosis, as well as slowed pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) prescriptions. In 2020, 44% fewer HIV tests were administered among Black people in non-healthcare settings than in 2019.

Due to the disruptions in testing and clinical care services, CDC is not able to estimate new HIV infections (“HIV incidence”) for 2020 or to provide HIV trends through 2020. CDC is also unable to estimate the total number of diagnosed and undiagnosed HIV infections (“HIV prevalence”); or knowledge of HIV status.