New CDC HIV Data Demonstrates the Impact of Flat Funding

Cautions against a Repeat of Last Year’s House Republican Funding Cuts

Washington DC… CDC data released today show that the number of new HIV diagnoses in the United States remains stubbornly stable at 31,800 in 2022. While new HIV diagnoses have fallen by 12 percent over the past five years, driven by a 30 percent decrease in new cases among young people, the number remains high and is not decreasing at the rate needed to end HIV by 2030.

Though we see some encouraging developments, including a decrease of 16 percent of new diagnoses in the South since 2018 and an impressive drop of 21 percent since 2017 in the phase 1 Ending the HIV Epidemic initiative jurisdictions, disparities persist, particularly among gay men of all races and ethnicities, transgender women, Blacks, and Latinos. Among these communities there were some improvements; however, for transgender women, diagnoses increased by 25 percent. Latino gay men now account for 39 percent of all HIV diagnoses among men who have sex with men.

CDC credits the nominal improvements to continued testing programs, the utilization of PrEP, and viral suppression among those using antiretroviral treatments.

“While we would have liked to see improved outcomes, federal funding for CDC HIV prevention and the Ryan White HIV/AIDS care and treatment program, along with other critical programs, has remained flat for years. The only increases have been for the Ending the HIV Epidemic initiative, and even that program hasn’t received the increases it needs to be successful,” commented Carl Schmid, executive director of the HIV+Hepatitis Policy Institute.

“This past year, House Republicans proposed to cut $767 million from domestic HIV programs, but in the end, the programs were again flat-funded,” added Schmid. “Even though Congress has agreed to increase non-defense spending by 1 percent next year, House Republicans have already announced they will cut as much as 11 percent of funding from the bill that includes most HIV programs, setting up another year that the future of HIV programs will be left hanging in the balance. This is no way to address a deadly infectious disease and will lead to additional new HIV diagnoses and, eventually, more healthcare costs.”

Schmid continued, “Without significant increases for care and treatment, and prevention programs, including those for PrEP, sadly we will continue to experience only small drops in the number of new diagnoses, and racial and ethnic disparities will persist. As a nation, we can and must do better.”

The CDC reports that there remain approximately 1.2 million people living with HIV in the U.S.

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The HIV+Hepatitis Policy Institute is a national, non-profit organization whose mission is to promote quality and affordable healthcare for people living with or at risk of HIV, hepatitis, and other serious and chronic health conditions.