On Dec. 23, Mayor Lori E. Lightfoot and the Chicago Department of Public Health ( CDPH ) announced that new HIV diagnoses in Chicago hit a record lowcontinuing a trend of four consecutive years of declines.
A total of 734 new HIV diagnoses were reported among Chicago residents in 2018the lowest number since 1988. This represents a 60-percent reduction in new annual cases since 2001 and a 19-percent reduction since 2014.
"A world where we end the HIV epidemic is within our reach, and these latest findings prove that Chicago is on track to end the HIV epidemic by 2030," Lightfoot said in a statement. "Chicagoans will not rest until we achieve functional zero, meaning we will continue to increase access to care and services, expand our work with community partners and strengthen the quality of life for every city resident."
HIV continues to disproportionately impact certain groups more than others, including males; gay and bisexual males as well as other men who have sex with men; and Black communities. CDPH is addressing the challenges and barriers experienced by these groups through its HIV Services Portfolio, which is awarding more than $40 million annually to over 60 community-based and healthcare organizations beginning in 2019.
CDPH's 2019 HIV/STI Surveillance Report showed that 23,580 individuals in Chicago were living with HIV through the end of 2017, the year for which most current data are available.