Southern HIV/AIDS Awareness Day

August 20 is Southern HIV/AIDS Awareness Day (SHAAD), an opportunity to raise awareness about the HIV epidemic in the Southern region of the United States. The South, and particularly the “Deep South” (Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas), experiences a higher burden of HIV compared to other regions in the country and has lower PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis) use.

In 2022, the South accounted for 52% of all new HIV diagnoses, despite only representing 38% of the U.S. population. That same year, 14% of people living with HIV in the South were unaware of their HIV status. In 2024, the South had the lowest PrEP-to-Need Ratio (PnR) in the country—12 PrEP users for every new HIV diagnosis—indicating the greatest unmet need for HIV prevention services.

Social determinants of health (SDOH), such as poverty, lack of health insurance coverage, housing instability, and systemic racism, drive inequities in HIV prevention, testing, treatment, and care. In 2022, the South had the highest poverty rate and the lowest median household income in the U.S., further contributing to the region’s HIV burden.

HIV disproportionately impacts Black and Hispanic individuals in the South. In 2022, Black individuals represented nearly half (48%) of all new HIV diagnoses but accounted for only 23% of Southern PrEP users in 2024. Hispanic individuals accounted for 26% of new HIV diagnoses in 2022, yet made up just 19% of PrEP users in 2024.

This Southern HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, AIDSVu is highlighting the urgent need to address the health inequities and social determinants of health that contribute to the South’s disproportionate HIV burden, and calling for action to expand access to HIV prevention, testing, and care services.