National Youth HIV/AIDS Awareness Day

National Youth HIV/AIDS Awareness Day

National Youth HIV & AIDS Awareness Day (NYHAAD) highlights the impact of HIV in young people and raises awareness about ongoing efforts in HIV prevention, testing, and treatment for this population. First observed in 2013, NYHAAD is organized by Advocates for Youth, an organization that works with communities to ensure youth have tools to prevent HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs).

Today’s youth have never known a world without HIV. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC):

• In 2021, 19 percent of new HIV diagnoses were among young people aged 13-24.
• Only 6 percent of high school students have ever been tested for HIV. For every 100 people with HIV aged 13-24, 56 people know their HIV status, the lowest of any age group in the United States. Getting an HIV test is critical so people know their HIV status and can access treatment, if needed.
• Among people aged 13-24 who have been diagnosed with HIV and know their HIV status, 80 percent received some HIV care, more than in any other age group. In addition, 55 percent of people with diagnosed HIV in this age group were retained in care, and 65 percent were virally suppressed. People with HIV who are virally suppressed have undetectable viral loads and will not transmit HIV to sexual partners, a concept known as Undetectable = Untransmittable (U=U).

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) HIV research program, coordinated by the NIH Office of AIDS Research (OAR), supports research on HIV prevention, testing, and treatment for different populations, including youth. This includes research to understand effective strategies to encourage youth to access HIV services.