National Latinx AIDS Awareness Day (NLAAD) is observed each year on October 15 to increase awareness of the impact of HIV on the Hispanic/Latino population in the United States. NLAAD is a day to highlight the Latino faces behind the HIV epidemic and unite the Hispanic/Latino community to promote HIV testing, prevention, and education.

Latino people account for over a quarter of new HIV diagnoses every year in the U.S., yet 1 in 6 are not aware of their status. According to the CDC, the estimated HIV incidence rate for 2018 among Hispanic/Latino persons in the United States was four times that of non-Hispanic White persons.

Timely diagnosis of HIV and linkage to care is essential for improving health outcomes of individuals living with HIV. However, only 51% of Hispanics/Latinos living with HIV in 2016 had achieved viral suppression, which means the amount of virus in one’s blood is so low as to be undetectable, and therefore untransmittable. Recently published findings from the CDC’s Medical Monitoring Project show that adherence to anti-retroviral medications (ART) is high at 77% among Hispanic/Latino men who have sex with men (MSM) living with HIV, but that lack of access to services such as mental health, housing, food, and financial support are still substantial barriers to staying in care.

Raising awareness, promoting HIV testing, disseminating prevention strategies, and connecting Hispanics/Latinos to care lead to improved health outcomes at the individual and community levels. NACCHO encourages local health departments to share information and resources on NLAAD and beyond to support awareness of HIV in the Hispanic/Latino community. For bilingual social media graphics and infographics about HIV prevention and testing, visit the Resources page of NLAAD.org. The CDC also has a NLAAD social media toolkit with English and Spanish graphics, videos, and more.

To learn more about NLAAD and the impact of HIV on Hispanic/Latino communities, attend an NLAAD event virtually or in your community. Visit NLAAD.org to locate an event near you or view recent webinars observing National Latinx Awareness Day. Recent and upcoming webinars hosted by the Latino Commission on AIDS, the CDC, and others include:

• Informed and Empowered: HIV Self-Testing during COVID-19 (recorded)
• Social Determinants of Health and HIV in Latinx and Communities of Color (recorded)
• Townhall Held in Spanish: Ending the HIV Epidemic--“Together We Can” (October 13^th)
• Advancing the “Ending the HIV Epidemic” Initiative during COVID-19 (October 14^th)
• Undetectable = Untransmittable: The Message and the Movement (October 22^nd)