Washington (AFP)

Revolutionary Daily Tablet Helps Prevent HIV / AIDS Virus Infection, New Statistics Released Tuesday by US Health Authorities Show White Whites at Risk Getting More Prescription than Blacks and Latinos .

The figures published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) illustrate the gap that remains to be filled in order to end the AIDS epidemic by 2030, an objective launched by President Donald Trump in February.

Racial and social inequalities are among the most monumental barriers, starting with something as simple as going to a clinic and being prescribed the tablet, called PrEP, just because you're at risk.

"We can end the status quo, but we have to change our expectations and end the culture of satisfaction we are in," said Jay Butler, CDC's Deputy Director of Infectious Diseases in a conference call, recalling three pillars of the HIV strategy: generalization of tests; immediate and systematic treatments; and much wider adoption of PrEP.

PrEP, for "pre-exposure prophylaxis", has been allowed in the United States since 2012 and is now routinely recommended for men who have sex with men, heterosexuals who engage in risky behavior, and people who use drugs. syringes to use drugs.

18% of this population at risk of 1.2 million people used PrEP in 2018, say the CDC in a study, against 9% in 2016. The goal is to reach half.

But this figure hides racial disparities: 42% among whites, 11% among Latinos, and 6% among blacks.

And regional: in New York, one of the richest places in the country, 41% of the public at risk benefits from PrEP. In the poorer and rural southern states, the proportion often falls below 15 percent.

These differences are found in the number of blacks who are diagnosed, and those who are HIV positive but in whom the virus is not under control. With current antiretroviral regimens, a patient can see their viral load become undetectable after six months, but that means taking their medications every day.

However, many HIV-positive blacks do not have health coverage, are homeless or in prison, according to CDC experts, three factors that significantly affect the regular intake of treatment.

By 2018, more than two-thirds of new HIV diagnoses were among black or Hispanic people in the United States.

© 2019 AFP