Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard (CA-34), who is chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Health Care Task Force and a senior member of the Appropriations Subcommittee responsible for funding federal health programs, released the following statement about World AIDS Day: 

“Today, December 1, we commemorate the 23rd annual recognition of World AIDS Day.  It has been 30 years since the discovery of AIDS cases in the United States, and in that time we have seen HIV / AIDS progress from an acute terminal illness to a manageable chronic disease.  Our federal investments in domestic and international research, prevention, and treatment have been a beacon of hope to the 33.3 million people now living with HIV worldwide.  

But we still have work to do. Despite the progress made over the last 25 years, the disease continues to plague communities worldwide, and here in the United States there are approximately 48,000 new HIV infections each year.  Minority communities and gay men are the groups most affected by HIV, and our communities of color face the majority of new infections.   African Americans represent approximately 14% of the US population, but accounted for 44% of all new HIV infections in 2009. Hispanic/Latinos represent approximately 16% of the total US population, but accounted for 20% (9,400) of all new HIV infections in 2009.

The CDC estimates that there are nearly 1.2 million people living with HIV in the United States, and 1 in 5 people with this disease don’t know they are infected.  As a result, these individuals do not get the care they need to stay healthy and prevent them from infecting others. We must not allow cultural barriers or stigma to stand in the way of identifying and treating this disease.  Today, I encourage all my constituents to get educated, get tested, get treated and get involved! On this World AIDS day, let’s commit to work together and make AIDS a disease of the past.”