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The Impact Of HIV
On The Latino Population

Latinos in the United States are hit hard by HIV, having higher rates of both new HIV infections and people living with HIV disease than their white counterparts. Latino youth and gay and bisexual men have been mostly affected. A number of challenges contribute to the epidemic in Latino communities, including poverty, injection drug use, stigma and discrimination, limited access to health care, and language or cultural barriers in health care.  As the largest and fastest growing ethnic minority group in the United States, addressing HIV in the Latino community is important.

In a 2014 study published by the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation some of the key facts of the spread and affect of HIV in the Latino population are as follows:

  • There are more than 1.1 million people living with HIV in the U.S., including more than 220,000 Latinos.
  • Latinos represented approximately 16% of the U.S. population but accounted for 21% of new HIV infections and 19% of people living with HIV disease in 2010.  Latinos also accounted for 21% of new AIDS diagnoses in 2011.
  • The rate of new HIV infections per 100,000 among Latino adults/adolescents was the 2nd highest of any racial/ethnic group in the U.S. in 2010 – over 3 times that of whites, but less than half that of African Americans.
  • Latinos accounted for nearly 1 in 5 deaths among people with an HIV diagnosis in 2010 (3,513, or 18%).
  • The number of new HIV infections among Latinos peaked in the late 1980s, has declined since then, and stood at 9,800 in 2010. Throughout the epidemic, the number of new HIV infections among Latinos has been lower than those among whites and African Americans.
  • HIV incidence and prevalence rates, which show the severity of impact after controlling for differences in population size, illustrate the impact on Latinos - Among people 13 years and older estimated to be newly infected with HIV in 2010, the incidence rate for Latinos was 3 times higher than for whites (27.5 compared to 8.7). Also, Latinos were more than twice as likely as whites to be living with HIV at the end of 2010 (rates of 579.3 and 223.0, respectively).
    The number of Latinos living with an HIV diagnosis increased by 8% between 2008 and 2010, compared to a 7% increase among African Americans and a 5% increase among whites.
  • Latinos accounted for 18% of deaths among people with an HIV diagnosis in 2010, and the number of deaths among Latinos with an HIV diagnosis decreased by 3% between 2008 and 2010; deaths among African Americans also decreased (8%), and deaths among whites remained stable.
    In 2010, the HIV death rate per 100,000 for Latinos was more than twice the rate for whites (rates of 2.2 and 1.1, respectively).

How Do Latinos Get Infected with HIV?

Of course, there isn't just one "Latino Community" in the United States. The term "Latino" refers to a person whose family is from a Spanish-speaking country, regardless of race. So the Latino population of the United States is very diverse - and so are the predominant means of infection.

CDC data suggests that Latinos born in Puerto Rico are more likely than other Latinos to be infected by HIV as a result of injection drug use or high-risk heterosexual contact (which is defined as "sex with a person known to have or be at risk for HIV infection"). By contrast, sex with other men is the primary cause of HIV infections among Latino men born in Central or South America, Cuba, Mexico or the United States.

Overall, for Latino males, the most common methods of transmission cited by the CDC were:

- Sex with other men

- Injection drug use

- High-risk heterosexual contact

For Latina females, the most common methods of transmission were high-risk heterosexual contact and injection drug use.

Why is the Rate of Infection Among Latinos so High?

There is no single "smoking gun" that explains why the rate of infection is so high in the Latino population. Instead, experts believe a constellation of factors is responsible.

1. Denial

When AIDS was first identified, it was thought of as a disease that affected white male homosexuals. As a result, many Latinos did not think they were at risk. Unfortunately, this denial continues, compounded by the cultural expectation that all Latino men are "macho." Many Latinos still cannot bring themselves to admit that gay Latinos exist.

2. Lack of Condom Use

HIV advocates promoting condom use in the Latino communities have an uphill battle on their hands. Part of the resistance to condoms is due to the teachings of the Catholic church, which prohibited condom use. Part of it is a feeling among Latinos that condoms take away from the intimacy of sex. In five studies of gay and bi-sexual men cited by the CDC, gay Latino men had the lowest incidence of condom use of all demographic groups.

3. Language Barrier

Of course, there are HIV educational materials printed in Spanish - but not nearly as many as printed in English. In general, the knowledge of basic facts about HIV is very low among Latinos, largely because the information is not widely available in Spanish. In addition, the language barrier makes it hard for Latinos to access basic health care resources.

4. Socio-Economic Factors

Poverty, transience, lack of formal education, lack of health insurance and lack of access to health care are all factors that put Latinos at high risk for HIV and then treatment.

5. Fear of Deportation

For Latinos in the United States without documentation, fear of being identified as an illegal and then deported keep them from interacting with any branch of government - including the health care system. For undocumented workers with HIV, deportation can be a death sentence if they are returned to a country where adequate HIV treatment is not available.

All these factors add up, and they take their toll. The net result is that, in Texas - a state with a high Latino population - 34% of Latinos diagnosed with HIV were diagnosed with AIDS within one month. Since untreated HIV can take 10-years to progress to AIDS, that means that they have been unknowingly spreading the virus for a decade. In addition, since HIV is much easier to treat earlier than once it has progressed to AIDS, their health outcomes are much worse.

What Can Be Done?

The affect HIV has in the Latino population isn't a secret. As the facts and figures for this article point out, there are well-funded foundations, organizations and government agencies that aren't turning a blind eye. But what can they do?

Probably not as much as you can!

If you are a member of the Latino community it's up to you to be responsible if you are HIV-positive both to yourself and your partner(s). If you know someone who might be at risk because of their lifestyle, urge them to get tested - that can stop new infections.

It's up to all Latinos to educate themselves, protect themselves, get tested, and seek out the highest-quality health care if they are HIV-positive.

Make it start with you - you'll be surprised the difference one person can make in a community!

 

Copyright 2018, Positive Health Publications, Inc.

This magazine is intended to enhance your relationship with your doctor - not replace it! Medical treatments and products should always be discussed with a licensed physician who has experience treating HIV and AIDS!