Study: HIV cases still rising in Latinx communities
Latino health advocates say there is a need for how we approach HIV care in Latinx communities KAMILA VARGAS-GONZALEZ | Dallas Voice Intern editor@dallasvoice.com Experiencing unstable healthcare is not something new to West Dallas resident Javier Enriquez, especially when it comes to HIV care.
The added obstacle of homophobia in his community and the fear and distrust of engaging with the system also create a harder road toward getting tested for the virus, saying, “When I first got tested, I was 25.” Liv Mortel also experienced difficulty getting tested in the DFW suburb of Red Oak where they were raised. “[For Latine people], any sexual thing is very taboo.
It’s very hush-hush,” Mortel stated. “I had to go outside of my community.” According to the CDC, the estimated number of HIV cases in the United States had a 12 percent decrease between the years 2018 and 2022.
However, in 2022, HIV diagnoses increased by 17 percent amongst Hispanic/Latinos. Natalie Sanchez And in 2021, the Dallas County Health and Human Services reported a 30 percent increase in male cases and a 6.5 percent increase in female cases. “What we are looking at is the intersection of many different issues happening at the same time,” Daniel Castellanos, vice president of Research and Innovation at the Latino Commission on AIDS, said. “There are some areas, like in the South, and Texas in particular, where there are [multiple] factors happening.” The Southern and Western states account for 73.8 percent of the HIV cases among U.S.
