Demographics
While it’s true a person living in Houston is more likely to be living with HIV than other parts of the country, the distribution of who these people are is not equal across demographics like race, sex, and age.
Percentage of people living with HIV
By Race/Ethnicity
By Sex
By Age
35.5%
Black
36%
Hispanic
22%
White
Male
Female
79.2%
20.8%
3.6%
Ages 13 - 24 Ages 25 - 34 Ages 35 - 44 Ages 45 - 54 Ages 55+
19.8%
22.7%
23.3%
30.7%
Ages 13 - 24 Ages 25 - 34
Ages 35 - 44 Ages 45 - 44
Ages 55+
* This data reflects the current statistics of HIV in Texas. Courtesy of AIDSVu.
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Late HIV diagnosis
For public health, late diagnosis shows how far public health programs have to go to be more effective. Promoting HIV testing, awareness, and access to healthcare services is essential for addressing the challenges posed by late HIV diagnosis and improving health outcomes.
Number of new HIV diagnoses that were diagnosed late, 2021:
912
1
5
in
HIV diagnoses is still happening far too late.
Percentage of new HIV diagnoses that were diagnosed late, 2021:
20.9%
HIV mortality
While the care and treatment of HIV has vastly improved in the last 40 years, HIV/AIDS is still deadly.
In 2021
1,748
people died of HIV/AIDS, making the rate of death for people living with HIV 7 per 100,000.
That puts the death rate in Texas from HIV higher than all forms of meningitis and hepatitis combined.
HIV Prevalence ratios by race/ethnicity
The rate of Black males living with an HIV diagnosis is
4.4 times
that of White males
The rate of Hispanic/Latino males living with an HIV diagnosis is
1.7 times
The rate of Black females living with an HIV diagnosis is
14.2 times
that of White females
The rate of Hispanic/Latina females living with an HIV diagnosis is
2.2 times
In Houston, the disparity is even larger:
Black males LWH 5.2 times that of White males
Hispanic/Latino males LWH 1.9 times that of White males
Black females LWH 18.3 times that of White females
Hispanic/Latina females LWH 3.4 times that of White females
percentage of people living with hiv, by transmission category 2021
78.9%
7.7%
7.2%
5.6%
0.6%
Male-to-Male Sexual Contact
Male Categories
Heterosexual Contact
Male-to-Male Sexual Contact & Injection Drug Use
Injection Drug Use
Other/ Unknown*
Female Categories
80.6%
17.1%
2.3%
Taken together, it’s clear that Houston needs Legacy Community Health to care for our neighbors living with HIV. We’ve made great progress, but that’s precisely why we can’t stop striving to end the HIV epidemic.
Source: * = AIDSVu, People Living wtih HIV, by Transmission Category, 2021.
