March
10 Is National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day
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| SUMMARY:
Thursday, March 10, is the 6th annual National Women
and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day (NWGHAAD), designated
to call attention to the disease in this vulnerable
population. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention (CDC), nearly a quarter of
all diagnoses of HIV infection and of AIDS in 2009
were among women and girls aged 13 years and older,
with women of color impacted most heavily. |
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The
CDC notes that nearly 184,000 women and adolescent girls were
living with HIV at the end of 2008, and more than 101,000
women and girls with AIDS have died since the beginning of
the epidemic.
Women and girls of color -- especially African-Americans --
bear a disproportionately heavy burden of HIV infection. In
2009, according to the CDC, the rate of HIV diagnosis for
black females was nearly 20 times higher than the rate for
white females and approximately 4 times higher than the rate
for Hispanic/Latina females.
Various government agencies are recognizing the day:
In
addition, further news and event information is available
on Twitter at #NWGHAAD.
3/11/11
Sources
Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention. National
Women & Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day.
AIDSinfo. National
Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day.
