World AIDS Day: The progress and the challenges of combating the virus in Georgia
It’s estimated that 1.2 million people are living in the U.S. with HIV. According to the latest data from AIDSVu, at least 59,422 people are living with HIV in Georgia. Of that number, 2,371 people in Georgia were newly diagnosed with the virus.
Data further suggests Atlanta’s Fulton, DeKalb and Clayton Counties have the highest rates of HIV/AIDS cases in the state. To put that into perspective, Atlanta has the fourth-highest HIV rate of all major US cities.
Friday marks the 35th World AIDS Day and 20th anniversary of the United States President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). The theme for World AIDS Day is “Remember and Commit.”
A lot has changed since the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention first defined HIV/AIDS in 1981. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recently set a collaborative goal to end the HIV epidemic by 2030.
On Friday’s special edition of “Closer Look with Rose Scott,” Rose talked with several guests about the progress and continuing challenges in combating the disease in the state of Georgia.
Those guests include:
- Daphne Walker, the division director for the Housing Assistance Division at Georgia Department of Community Affairs
- Dr. Patrick Sullivan, an AIDSVu principal scientist and a professor of epidemiology at Emory University’s Rollins School of Public Health
- Mia Allison, an assistant pastor at Hope For Tomorrow Deliverance Center
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