The HIV infection rate for Black women in urban settings is 5 times higher than the national average, and 5 times higher than the CDC previously estimated.  The hotspots for these alarming rates are: Atlanta, GA, New York City, Raleigh-Durham, NC, Newark, NJ, Baltimore, MD and Washington, D.C.  According to research data, the HIV rates for Black women in urban areas are comparable to the rates of some African countries.

AIDS experts from John Hopkins, along with other researchers, unveiled their findings in Seattle at the 19th annual Conference on Retrovirus and Opportunistic Infections.  Nationally, 5 out of every 10,000 Black women are infected by HIV each year, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.  In the urban hotspots studied, the rate is 24 per 10,000 Black women.  This is comparable to the rate in the Congo where 28 of every 10,000 are infected with HIV.

12,500 American women are newly infected with the HIV virus each year.  66% of those women are Black.  The fact that Black women account for less than 14% of the U.S. population makes this statistic staggering.  As reported in the Joh Hopkins University Gazette, “the age-adjusted death rate for Black women in the United States is nearly 15 times higher than that observed for HIV infected white women.”

RELATED ARTICLE: Health Crisis for Black Women

HIV/AIDS kills.  If you live in an urban area, know that you are at a much greater risk…5 times higher than even the CDC previously estimated.  Black women in urban populations have an HIV infection rate nearly as high as the third world, war-ravaged Republic of Congo.  This is a national emergency for Black women.  Do not become another statistic. 

Find a Center and get tested!  The CDC recommends that women who are not in monogamous long-term relationships, be tested for HIV every year.  All pregnant women need to be tested.  Abstain or practice safe sex.  Wrap it UP.   Encourage your family members and friends to do the same.   Stay vigilant Black women and guard yourselves from an unnecessary death sentence.