Department of Health concerned about rising HIV cases in MN women
In 1990, women represented only 11 percent of the AIDS cases in the U.S. In 2005, that number rose to 26 percent. This increase is partially represented in the 1,289 HIV cases that have been reported among women and an estimated 1,168 that are currently living with HIV in Minnesota. Peter Carr, director of the STD and HIV Section of the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), quoted on the MDH's website: "The proportion of HIV cases among women has been a growing concern over the past couple of decades in Minnesota. Women represented just two percent of our HIV infections in 1985, 19 percent in 1995, and now 29 percent in 2005." The STD and HIV Section of the MDH currently funds 22 programs through 19 agencies aimed at preventing the spread of HIV in adults and young people. National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day will be held this Saturday, March 10, to draw attention to the growing cases of HIV/AIDS in American women.