PHOENIX — For the third year in a row, Greenlee County recorded zero cases of HIV/AIDS infections, despite the number of cases and rate of infection increasing statewide.
That’s according to the 2023 HIV/AIDS in Arizona annual report, issued by the Arizona Department of Health Services.
In 2022, Graham County experienced a rate of 7.7 new cases per 100,000 population, up from a rate of 7.6 in 2021 and 2.6 in 2020.
Statewide, there were 975 new cases of HIV/AIDS in 2022, at a rate of 13.2 per 100,000 population. That’s up from 852 new cases in 2021 and a rate of 11.4. 2020 saw 696 new cases and a rate of 9.6.
By race and ethnicity, Hispanics have seen the greatest number of cases each year since 2015, with 405 in 2022. They were followed by whites (292), blacks (162) and Native Americans (51).
Those aged 20-29 reported the greatest number of cases from 2010 to 2020, when those aged 30-39 became the group with the greatest number of cases.
The 2023 report states the number of HIV/AIDS-related deaths statewide is on the decline. However, the last three annual reports show there were 326 HIV/AIDS-related deaths in 2022, which is up from 316 deaths in 2021 and 272 deaths in 2020.
