News

2018 Theme: “Stay the Course, the Fight is Not Over!"

New Jersey Department of Health officials are marking the 18th annual National Black HIV Awareness Day by encouraging African-American residents in New Jersey to take proactive steps to protect themselves and their community from HIV/AIDS.

On February 6th, Acting Commissioner Dr. Shereef Elnahal will join the New Jersey Human Development Corporation (NJHDC) along with Acting Assistant Commissioner Loretta Dutton, HIV, STD, TB Services, and Steve Saunders, Director of HIV Prevention and Education, for the organization’s annual observance at the War Memorial in Trenton, NJ.

Acting Commissioner Elnahal will speak at 9:15 a.m. The NJHDC is a non-profit organization of the African Methodist Episcopal Church that provides communities with knowledge, skills and services to help prevent and control HIV.

“New Jersey has been making great progress in reducing transmissions of HIV with medical advances in HIV prevention and treatment methods,” Dr. Elnahal said. “However, minority communities are disproportionately affected, and while African-Americans are 15 percent of New Jersey’s total population they represent 50 percent of those currently living with HIV/AIDS in the state.”

There are more than 37,000 people living with HIV in New Jersey.

CDC recommends everyone between the ages of 13 and 64 be tested at least once, and those at higher risk should be tested at least once annually. Healthcare professionals should offer an HIV test as part of routine care.

While there is still work to be done to ensure everyone knows how to protect against HIV, significant progress is being made within the black community. African Americans are more likely than other races and ethnicities to report that they have been tested for HIV at least once: 68 percent versus 55 percent for Hispanics and 37 percent for whites, based on data from the New Jersey Behavioral Risk Factor Survey.

In addition, the Department distributed nearly $64 million last year to support HIV prevention and care services including a statewide network of 24 PrEP counselors, nurses in syringe access programs who provide access to reproductive care and HIV Services, and Awareness campaigns encouraging New Jerseyans to regularly test for Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI).

Last year, the funding also supported testing and services for those living with HIV or at risk for the disease. Nearly 80,000 free, confidential rapid HIV tests were administered at more than 150 locations. Approximately 5,700 HIV patients receive HIV-related medications through the New Jersey AIDS Drug Distribution Program annually.

The Department’s Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) program was established in 2016 to provide biomedical prevention services to individuals who are at substantial risk of acquiring HIV. Individuals in the PrEP program prevent infection by taking a pill every day. New Jersey has 24 PrEP counselors who work in HIV clinics, federally qualified health centers (FQHC), community-based organizations that serve gay and bisexual men, and other sites around the state.

For information on PrEP Counseling or HIV testing sites, visit http://nj.gov/health/hivstdtb/hiv-aids/getting-tested/index.shtml or call 1- 800-624-2377.

To learn more about National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, visit https://www.cdc.gov/hiv/library/awareness/nbhaad.html

Follow the New Jersey Department of Health on Twitter @njdeptofhealth, Facebook /njdeptofhealth, Instagram @njdeptofhealth and Snapchat @njdoh.