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September 27 Is National Gay Men's HIV/AIDS Awareness Day

September 27 is National Gay Men's HIV/AIDS Awareness Day (NGMHAAD), an annual opportunity to call attention to the disproportionate effect of the epidemic on gay and bisexual men. According to the CDC, gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men account for nearly two-thirds of new HIV infections in the U.S., despite making up approximately 2% of the population, with young black gay and bi men being most heavily affected.

"In addition to reflection, NGMHAAD is also a day for action," Jonathan Mermin (@DrMerminCDC), Director of CDC's National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention, said during a September 24 Twitter chat. "NGMHAAD is the perfect time to think about what we've accomplished and what still lies ahead for us to do. [W]hat we need to do is clear -- work together toward data-based solutions to end HIV."

NGMHAAD Resources

• Twitter: #NGMHAAD
• AIDS.gov: National Gay Men's HIV/AIDS Awareness Day
• CDC: National Gay Men's HIV/AIDS Awareness Day
• CDC: HIV Among Gay and Bisexual Men
• CDC: National HIV and STD Testing Resources
• NIH: National Gay Men's HIV/AIDS Awareness Day

"Over the years we have achieved encouraging milestones in the fight against HIV. Yet gay and bisexual men of all races and ethnicities continue to be severely affected by HIV infection," Mermin and Eugene McCray, Director of the CDC's Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention, wrote in a letter to colleagues in recognition of NGMHAAD. "The most recent CDC data show that gay and bisexual men represent more than half of the 1.2 million people living with HIV in the United States. In fact, HIV diagnoses continue to increase among young gay and bisexual men, and this group is the least likely of all gay and bisexual men to be linked to treatment, retained in care, or virally suppressed."

"In response to these trends, we must reach all gay and bisexual men at risk for or living with HIV with scientifically proven HIV prevention strategies," they continued. "We now have powerful biomedical prevention tools, such as antiretroviral therapy, pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), and post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) that can drastically reduce the risk for HIV transmission. Leveraging these advances is part of the updated National HIV/AIDS Strategy (NHAS), which provides us a road map toward reducing new HIV infections, increasing access to care, improving health outcomes, and addressing HIV-related health disparities among gay and bisexual men, especially young gay and bisexual men of color."

9/25/15

Source

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. National Gay Men's HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. Updated September 22, 2015.