The disease is a leading cause of death in women who have sex with men.
While the number of overall HIV infections is decreasing, women now account for more than half of the total worldwide infections of HIV. Women continue to face many challenges as the HIV/AIDS epidemic has more than tripled in this population over the last three decades.
·Women now represent one in five of the new HIV diagnoses in America, with 64% of these women being African American
·HIV/AIDS is the leading cause of death among women worldwide during their reproductive years (age 15-49)
·The majority of women (84%) acquire HIV through heterosexual sex and women are twice as likely to acquire HIV from sexual intercourse than men
Jennifer Sherwood, amfAR’s Policy Associate who is an expert on HIV among women, says:
“Today as we recognize our country’s progress at reducing new infections among women in recent years, we must also recognize that to eliminate HIV among women and girls, it is not enough to fight the virus. Elimination will require fighting to expand healthcare access, preventing and responding to the unacceptably high rates of violence against women and children, and fully including transgendered women in research and programming.”
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